Author – The Durango Herald

Credit card benefits for travelers are vanishing – what can you do?

Don’t look now, but banks and their airline partners are slowly and quietly removing credit card benefits that travelers rely on. If you’re planning a trip soon, you might want to read your ...

DATE: Feb 10, 2020 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

Facial-recognition technology stokes privacy concerns

Before Santiago Gassó’s recent flight from Atlanta to Mexico City, a Delta Air Lines gate agent announced a new boarding procedure. Instead of showing an ID and receiving paper boarding pass...

DATE: Jan 31, 2020 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

Should you take the train? Here’s how to decide

If you’re visiting Southern California, taking the train from Los Angeles to San Diego makes sense – on one level. You’ll see the area’s iconic beaches, strawberry fields and historic railro...

DATE: Jan 25, 2020 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

Don’t let airlines bully you with their ‘bad’ seats

Ask Clayton Conway about the worst seat on a plane, and he’ll tell you about the time he flew from Denver to Seattle on Frontier Airlines. “It was the worst flight experience I’ve...

DATE: Jan 18, 2020 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

Do you need medical evacuation coverage for your next trip?

Igor Natanzon had long dreamed of visiting Antarctica. But his photographic expedition to the South Pole turned into a nightmare after a rogue wave slammed into his ship and he required a me...

DATE: Jan 10, 2020 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

The best advice and apps for driving in bad weather

Unless you enjoy living dangerously, getting behind the wheel in a winter storm probably isn’t your idea of fun. “Road surfaces can change quickly between dry, snow-packed and icy...

DATE: Dec 22, 2019 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

A closer look can expose a travel deal too good to be true

When Brian Greenberg booked a Spirit Airlines flight from Phoenix to San Juan, Puerto Rico, last year, he thought he was getting a great deal. Greenberg, who owns an insurance age...

DATE: Dec 20, 2019 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

As passenger dissatisfaction soars, airline fines hit a historic low

This year, the government is on track to issue the lowest number of airline fines in history. Federal regulators insist they’re just doing their job and that the numbers represen...

DATE: Dec 12, 2019 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

There are ways to make your trips eco-friendlier

Whether you’re feeling flight-shamed, hotel-shamed or just plain shamed for being a traveler, chances are you’re probably wondering how to reduce your carbon footprint when you travel. Even ...

DATE: Dec 7, 2019 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

Blinded by the price: How to avoid making travel deal mistakes

Beware the high cost of a travel deal mistake. “It is not just about the dollars saved,” says Michal Strahilevitz, an associate professor of marketing at St. Mary’s College of Cal...

DATE: Nov 30, 2019 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

Stuck with an annoying airline seatmate? Here’s what you can do

Airline passengers can be so annoying. How annoying? Just ask Retha Charette, a tour guide from Arlington, Vermont. On a recent flight from Newark to Amsterdam, her seatmate opene...

DATE: Nov 23, 2019 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter

For the unlucky, motion sickness starts when the cruise ends

For Katy Breuer, the symptoms start as soon as she steps off a cruise ship. She feels dizzy and disoriented, can’t eat and can’t find her land legs. “It’s debilitating,” says Breuer, an exec...

DATE: Nov 16, 2019 | CATEGORY: The Travel Troubleshooter