Articles

Air Travel

Article / Passportable

Staples Will Laminate Your Covid-19 Vaccination Card for Free Until May 1

Office supply giant Staples is laminating customers' Covid-19 vaccination record cards for free until May 1. Why would you want that? Because having proof of vaccination will soon be…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Airlines Still Cashless Even Though Many Passengers Don’t Own Credit Cards

Delta Air Lines has announced that as of March 16, flight attendants will be equipped to accept contactless payments for in-flight purchases such as earbuds and food. Customers will be…

Article / Passportable

A New Nordic Airline Steps in to Launch Low-Cost Transatlantic Flights

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Anybody know how to translate that adage into Norwegian? It's only…

Article / Passportable

The Best and Worst Passports on the Planet, By Cost and Power

Fewer than 50% of Americans have passports—a surprisingly low percentage. Some people blame the price of the document, which is currently $145 for a new application or $110 to renew. A…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Steps the U.S. Government Should Take Right Now to Protect Air Travelers

What should be the top priorities for the U.S. Department of Transportation when it comes to air travel? Consumer Reports has a few ideas. The advocacy organization sent a list of…

Article / Passportable

Refund Woes Fueled a Record Number of Complaints from Air Travelers in 2020

The U.S. federal government received a record number of complaints from airline passengers in 2020. In all, 102,550 complaints were filed with the Department of Transportation,…

Article / Passportable

Here Are the Countries with the Least and Most Expensive Plane and Train Travel

Thailand has the world's most affordable domestic transportation prices overall while Denmark has the most expensive, according to a newly released analysis of plane, train, and bus…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

U.S. Airlines and CDC to Begin Contact-Tracing Passengers

Last week, the internet was abuzz with rumors that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) was about to introduce a testing requirement on domestic airline traffic. The scuttlebutt was…

Article / Passportable

JetBlue Forbids Free Carry-Ons for Basic Fares, Drops Change Fees Elsewhere

JetBlue is adding an irksome catch to its cheapest category of plane tickets. Any customer who books a basic economy fare—dubbed "Blue Basic" by JetBlue—for travel after July 20 will…

Article / Passportable

Airline Waives Mask Rule for Passengers in First and Business Class

First class and business class flyers getting special perks is not news. But it's a shocking development when airlines decide to bend science in an effort to attract big…

Article / Air Travel

Your Guide to the Airlines' In-Flight Covid Safety Policies

From asking passengers to bring their own masks to blocking seat assignments, here's what the major airlines say they're doing to convince passengers it's safe to fly.

Article / Passportable

Going Maskless on Planes, Buses, or Trains Could Now Cost $1,500 or More

For most of 2020, airlines and other travel suppliers urgently told customers to wear masks. But if passengers were unwilling to comply, there wasn't much that could be done. The major…

Article / Passportable

Four Men Eat Crate of Oranges at Chinese Airport to Avoid Excess Baggage Fee

How far would you go to get out of paying an extra fee at the airport? Whatever your answer, we're guessing it doesn't involve gobbling up nearly 70 pounds of produce in less than 30…

Article / Entry Requirements & Customs

The Testing and Quarantine Rules for Traveling to Hawaii During the Pandemic

A guide to untangling Hawaii's knotty rules for quarantine, testing, resort bubbles, and inter-island travel

Article / Passportable

This Year, You Finally, Really, Truly Need Real ID to Fly

Update, April 27, 2021: Guess what? The government delayed Real ID yet again. Click here to read about the new deadline.We really mean it this time: Real ID becomes mandatory at U.S.…

Article / Travelers with Disabilities

How Travelers with Disabilities Can Get Special Equipment for Air Travel—for Free

The nonprofit All Wheels Up is giving away harnesses and slings designed to make air travel more accessible for those with reduced mobility. Here's how to apply.

Article / Passportable

TSA Rolling Out Self-Scan I.D. Checkpoints That Don't Need Boarding Passes

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has converted 100% of its security checkpoints at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to accept self-scanned identification…

Article / Passportable

Southwest Airlines Celebrating Its 50th Birthday with $50 Fares

At my 50th birthday party, a friend noted that this would likely be the last big celebration of my life—until my funeral. Yes, that came from a friend. But not all birthday wishes have…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Two U.S. Airlines Launch Digital "Passports" for Passengers' Covid Status

Frommer's has been talking for months about the advent of vaccination passports, and it looks like the first iterations in the American air industry are here, by way of United Airlines…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Biden Announces Quarantine Requirement for Those Returning to the U.S. from Abroad

Federal regulations regarding travel are changing by the day—if not the hour. On the day after his inauguration as president, Joe Biden announced that, starting Tuesday, January 26,…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

On Day One, President Biden Makes Masks Mandatory on Planes, At National Parks, and Elsewhere

Over the last 10 months, common sense sat on the back burner. Even though 33 transportation unions, most airline CEOs, the good folks at Consumer Reports, and hundreds of thousands of…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Bad Tourists Are Faking Covid Test Results. Here’s How to Stop Them.

The advent of pandemic travel restrictions has given rise to a whole new subset of bad tourists. We're talking about the quarantine flouters, mask refuseniks, and other coronavirus…

Article / Passportable

Why You Should Never Order Coffee on a Plane (and Other Lessons from a Flight Attendant)

TikTok can make you laugh, it can make you dance, and now, thanks to the efforts of a savvy, personable flight attendant, it can also help you travel better (when it's time to travel…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

These Last-Minute Rules from the Trump Administration Could Harm Travelers

Yes, travel is our focus at Frommer's. But that doesn't mean we can ignore the actions of government that affect how we travel—our safety, our rights as consumers, and the protection…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Americans Flying Abroad Must Obtain Covid Tests Before Returning

Starting Tuesday, January 26, anyone flying into the United States will be required to produce proof of a negative Covid-19 test. That requirement, announced by the Centers for…