Hawaii topped the news this week as Tropical Storm Flossie hit the islands Monday before leaving as a tropical depression on Tuesday. The storm knocked out power on Maui, Molokai and the Big Island. Aqua Hospitality, Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines all issued waivers on cancellations or change fees – full details on the travel arrangements are available here.
In cruise news, we started looking ahead to National Cruise Vacation Week and 2014 with out feature on top cruise sales trends to watch for the coming year. We looked at new ships, the re-valuation of travel agents and the continuing strength of river cruises in the coming year.
The political situation in Egypt began to impact the cruise industry as MSC Cruises announced the cancellation of MSC Armonia’s 2013-2014 winter itineraries in the Red Sea. The ship will instead sail two new voyages departing from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
In Mexico news, Puerto Vallarta saw the announcement of three new hotels and new flights. The 125 room Hotel One, the 115 room Holiday Inn Express and a new AMResorts property in Puerto Vallarta’s hotel zone were all announced, although opening dates have not been officially set. Delta, Frontier, Aeromexico and Virgin America are now offering non-stop service to the region.
In air travel news, a jet was forced to make an emergency landing at the Southwest Georgia Regional Airport in Albany. More than 150 passengers made it off the Allegiant Air plane after pilots reported an indication of a possible fire in the cargo hold.
Additionally, a new study released by the website Sunshine.co.uk revealed that over one in five air travelers ignore the rules regarding the use of mobile devices during takeoff and landing.
Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for the latest travel industry news, trends and updates.