Latin Business Traveler
Weekly Latin American business travel news  
July 18, 2013  

  

 

 TopofPageA Latin Trade Group Publication
Delta Air Lines: Earn Miles that never expire
In This Week's Issue:
Frequent Traveler: 
Writer Judy Cantor-Navas 

A music journalist on the prowl for the latest Spanish-language entertainment scoops on slow-paced, nostalgic settings and a good bottle of rum.


By Mark Holston

 

Judy Cantor-Navas writes about Latin music for Billboard Magazine Latin Music and is managing editor of Billboard en Espa�ol. Based in Los Angeles, she travels the region in search of the best in new music.

 

Tell me about your favorite nostalgic hotel.

These days, Havana [Cuba] has better appointed hotels, like the trendy

Havana's Nacional hotel

Hotel Saratoga or Melia Cohiba, but I still love the 80-year-old Nacional: the photos of Johnny Weissmuller [an Olympic gold medalist best known for playing Tarzan in movies] and the bust of Nat King Cole, the grand palm-framed driveway, the pocket bar off the lobby. [On] the back patio and lawn with views of the malec�n, you can sit and listen to a trio playing vintage son (even the music for tourists in Cuba is life-affirming) music and eat some good rotisserie chicken. While I'm haunted by its star-studded, mafia connected past, the Nacional's ghostly glamour and mystery persist.

 

Is there an airport that sets your musical soul on fire?

Ezeiza airport in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires' Ezeiza. It's like a tango come to life. This terminal has set the scene for my own emotional departures, saying goodbye to some of my dearest friends. And I've always been moved by the frequent sighting of whole families there coming to see someone off who they don't expect to see again for a long time.

 

Which is the most difficult airport to pass through customs and immigration?

I'm sorry to say it's in the city where I was born, New York's JFK. Traveling with my husband, who is from Spain, I have seen too many times the disrespectful and downright cruel treatment of foreign nationals. They treat people in an unacceptably rude and purposefully intimidating way. I will never forget the sight of customs officers tearing apart the suitcase of a man from Venezuela, whose luggage contained some santos (figurines of saints), which they passed around, jeering and laughing loudly. For shame.

 

What's a great little get-away while visiting a major city?

While in Buenos Aires, I would not miss going to Tigre in the Rio de la Plata delta. Some of my most cherished memories are of spending weekends in a cabin there with no electricity and a brick parrilla (grill).

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tigre, outside Buenos Aires in the Rio de la Plata delta

 

Duty-Free Delights

Cantor-Navas' favorite duty free purchases.

 

"[No. 1 is] Havana Club rum. Whether I'm coming from Cuba or another Latin American country where I can buy it in the duty free, I always buy a couple of bottles.

 

"Usually I am searching for something to bring back to my son. While the prices [in duty free] are steeper than they should be, he has a collection of the toy airplanes that make "real" plane sounds and I'm always on the lookout for them.

 

"Otherwise, I like to buy local food products. I look for things I can't find at home, such as Spanish black olives. And while the prices are higher than at local stores, they usually aren't bad. Sometimes I buy something I need, like a cr�me or lipstick. I don't see it being cheaper than a department store, but when I'm waiting for a plane I actually have time to shop, so I take advantage."

  

Photos - Nacional hotel: Xl's-Shutterstock.com; Tigre: Mark Holston

 

News from our Partners
(Click the headlines to read full stories)

 

  Delta

Delta Air Lines launches new service to San Jose and Liberia, Costa Rica - marks 15 years of uninterrupted service to that nation: Daily Los Angeles, California-San Jose, Costa Rica flights began July 1. 

 

U.S. Department of Transportation tentatively awards Delta Air Lines additional daily non-stop Atlanta - S�o Paulo flight; flight awaits final government approval and could start as early as Oct. 1. Second Detroit - S�o Paulo flight also awarded.

 

 

University of Miami School of Business Administration  

Am�rica Economia ranks the University of Miami's MBA program No. 10 in the U.S. for Latin Americans; school's executive education program ranked No. 2 in U.S. for Latin America.

 

 

Back to Top 

Travel News

New Airline Routes and Route Changes

Brasilia
In August, Aerolineas Argentinas will begin non-stop daily flights between Buenos Aires Ezeiza airport and Brasilia, Brazil.

United Airlines will stop flying between New Jersey's Newark International Airport and Buenos Aires' Ezeiza International Airport after September 39.

 

Tradewind Aviation, which offers what it calls "Premium Scheduled

Tradewind
Service" on Pilatus PC12 and Cessna Grand Caravan planes, introduced service between San Juan, Puerto Rico and Anguilla, as well as between San Juan and Nevis.

 

Other Airline News

TAM Airlines has begun using new Boeing 767-300ER aircraft on its London Heathrow - Rio de Janeiro route, which runs three times a week. The new planes offer full-flat seating in Business Class, as well as revamped on-demand onboard entertainment.

 

U.S. Airways' optional new Bags VIP luggage delivery service will deliver luggage directly to a passenger's hotel, office or home in all the U.S. cities the airline serves, as well as Aruba; Freeport and Nassau, Bahamas; San Juan, Puerto Rico; St. George's, Bermuda; St. Thomas, USVI; and certain cities in Canada and Ireland. The service costs US$29.95 and up (in addition to checked baggage fees), and can be reserved online up to one hour prior to scheduled departure. Bags arrive at the designated location within four to six hours of the flight's arrival.

 

U.S. Airways also began offering a Track Your Bag tool via its website, which passengers can use to follow the status of checked bags with real-time information.

 

U.S. regional carrier Frontier Airlines now charges passengers up to US$100 to bring a carry-on bag aboard, and will charge $1.99 for non-alcoholic beverages. Effective Aug. 1, it will also stop offering complimentary in-flight TV to elite members of its EarlyReturns frequent flier program; DirecTV will cost US$3.99 on flights of two hours or less, and US$7.99 for longer flights.

 

U.S. carrier Alaska Airlines will increase its checked-baggage fee to US$25, beginning with tickets purchased on or after Oct. 30.

 

Hotel Openings, Renovations and Other News

The Sheraton Tucuman Hotel opened in San Miguel de Tucuman in Argentina's northwest. The Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide property has 124 rooms, a full-service restaurant, a spa and more than 28,000 square feet of meting space - including one of the region's largest convention centers. The space is spread over five ballrooms (the largest is 10,800 square feet) and includes a 9,500-square-foot poolside terrace with views of the mountains. It is owned by Sol del NOA and operated by Starwood.

 

Las Alamandas resort, in Jalisco on Mexico's Pacific coast, joined the Small Luxury Hotels of the World collection on independent properties.

 

Hotel Pipeline

InterContinental Hotels Group and Selfi Grupo Operador de Estacionamientos broke ground on the Holiday Inn Express Hotel Xalapa in Veracruz, Mexico. The 114-room hotel, which will include  multipurpose function space that can seat up to 400, is expected to open in summer 2014.

 

Loyalty Programs

United Airlines and Marriott have partnered on a program of reciprocal loyalty benefits called RewardsPlus. Members of either United's MileagePlus or Marriott's Rewards programs will receive 10% more United miles when redeeming Marriott points for flight and hotel vacation packages, and a 20% discount when converting Marriott points into United miles. MileagePlus elite-level members will receive an above 1:1 conversion rate when converting United miles to Marriott points. MileagePlus Gold and above members will receive complimentary Marriot Rewards Gold elite status through Jan. 31. Marriott Rewards Platinum and Platinum Premier members will receive MileagePlus Silver elite status through Jan. 31.

 

Mandarin Oriental Hotels joined Virgin America's Elevate loyalty program, allowing traveler who stay at Mandarin Oriental properties to earn 400 Elevate points per stay. 

 

 


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