consumer advocacy Page 3

On the Sunday, January 19th, 2020 edition of The Travel Guys… In The Travel News, Harrah's Reno, the original downtown club (started as a bingo parlor in 1937) was sold by Caesar's for $50 million dollars.  Jet Blue has raised the price of baggage fees by $5 to $35 bucks for your first bag.  Now it's probably just a matter of a few days until the other carriers join them at that level. In our Smarter Traveler segment, we read back a "Love Letter to Spirit Airlines" from one of their flyers.  OK, so it might not be a TOTAL love story. The Last Ship, starring Sting, will arrive in San Francisco in just a few weeks.  We have Sting''s co-star, Oliver Savile, with us to talk about the show. When people need help from a consumer advocate with a travel problem or issue, do they always tell a truthful story.  Or do they fudge just a little bit sometimes.  We ask Chris Elliott the question and his answer probably won't surprise you.

On this Sunday, April 15th edition of The Travel Guys... In the Travel News, the National Park Service has rolled back its plans for a massive price increase in 2020 to something more reasonable after receiving 110,000 public comments on the issue. Alaska Airlines says the price of last minute upgrades are going up while the amount of carry on luggage you can bring on board is getting smaller. There's a new idea in hotels coming soon. A space hotel. Would you like to float through space on your next vacation? Can you take food with you on the plane? Or is the rumor true, that TSA is telling flyers not to bring their favorite snacks? Leave it to the Travel Guys to have the answer, right from the TSA themselves. That is part of our Smarter Traveler segment; along with some personal packing tips from Tom. Is the demand for consumer advocacy rising or falling? As regulations that favor the consumer are either rolled back or ignored, are more people seeking help with their travel and other consumer issues? Chris Elliott joins us to answer the question. The demand for advocacy is rising fast to record levels. Home Exchange is Airbnb on steroids. Can you actually trade homes with someone for a week? Listen and find out that yes, it's all possible and being done every day. Mark is out traveling historic Route 66 and shares some of his observation from the first three days on "The Mother Road."

This Sunday, January 14th, on The Travel Guys... In the Travel News, Mark reports on Marriott's screw up in China, which has cost them their website for a week; and which airlines are listening when you tweet them. It's become a legitimate way to get the attention of at least two carriers. We focus on international destinations this week, taking you to both Japan and Iceland, with reports from our Road Reporters Chris Galloway and Scott Angeletti. Not only are they expert travelers on their respective destinations, they are hosting trips to them later this year.