TC has heard grim tales concerning lost
luggage, but the saga of the Washington traveler who lost
her bags three times on three trips in December is a
doozy.
Air
Canada, the airline involved in the lost-baggage bungling,
outsources many of its operations, including luggage tracking, to a
call center in India. That location, and the
number of phone calls back and forth between traveler and tracker
while pursuing the errant suitcase, resulted in more than just the
return of the baggage two days later.
Perched atop the
bag at her front door was a takeout container of chicken
curry, presumably offered as an apology from Air Canada
for the inconvenience and as a nod of recognition to the efforts of
employees in India.
Will cruise
ships be returning to St. Croix?John deJongh
Jr., the new governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands, hinted
at just that in his inaugural speech delivered near the cruise pier
in Frederiksted, St. Croix, one of three swearing-in speeches
deJongh gave (he made one on each of the three islands).
Right now, St.
Croixs dance card looks fairly bleak, with only three bunkering
calls scheduled by Royal Caribbean in January and
February.
However, TC hears
that the new governor is committed to the economic and touristic
upswing of St. Croix, including cruise calls and
airlift.
Americas
Vacation Center was named Norwegian Cruise
Lines elite agency for 2006. AVC received a similar award
from Royal Caribbean in late November. TC wonders
if AVC will win the triple crown when Carnival
announces its agency of the year in February.
Meanwhile, any
agents hoping to be part of the AVC home-based network better get
their resumes in order: The agency only hires 8.3% of interested
applicants, a more stringent acceptance rate than Harvard
University, which admitted 9% of applicants in
2006.
TC hears
the Travel Industry Association is planning a January
press conference to reveal the findings of a new study focused on
the growing popularity of wine tours.