The U.S. Congress found a way to come together and fix the furlough fiasco that government pundits say caused airport delays at major airports due to reduced Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employee staffing. The new bill allows the FAA the use of up to $253 million from various accounts to alleviate staff reduction and operation stalling through September 30. President Obama says he will sign the bill.

Then it starts all over again Oct. 1, right? 

Even if it doesn’t, flight delays and long layovers are common occurrences that can be used productively. Consider these options: 

• Eat at a gourmet restaurant—Check out the best places to eat at the 20 busiest airports.
• Take a nap—Here’s your ultimate guide to sleeping in airports.
• Work out—The five best airport gyms are waiting for you.
• Surf the Internet for free—You can get online easily at the 10 best airports offering free Wi-Fi.
• Buy a book—Airport bookstores are expanding, even in the e-book age—check these out.
• Practice yoga—Three airports are already offering yoga rooms. Namasté.
• Rent a movie—You can easily find airport terminal kiosks that rent or sell movies.
• Have a drink—There are some pretty unique airport bars out there. 
• Shop. Shop. Shop.—Enjoy the world’s best airports for shopping.

Did you encounter any delays due to furloughs? How do you pass the time during a layover? Please share your stories in the comments.

Let's face it, we're traveling more and more these days—it's just more valuable to be face to face. And don't we want good food while we're on the road? 

Whether it's trying new restaurants in tucked away corners of your hometown or in any other city in the world, you don't have to be a "Foodie" to appreciate food that is uniquely good and local.  

Wherever you look these days, there are celebrity chefs and culinary experts giving you the lowdown on where and what to eat—ala Anthony Bourdain, Alton Brown, Guy Fieri, or Andrew Zimmern—when you're in a new destination, but I've never come across a "must-eat-here list" like this one. It's the "Best Places to Eat in the 20 Busiest U.S. Airports" recently published by travel expert Beth Kaufman for CNN. 

That's right, airports.  

Are the days of having to walk 40 gates and two terminals to what only turns out to be a mirage and having to ultimately end up on a barstool at the TGI Fridays after all, making a long layover even less palatable, officially over? 

Well, it seems there’s a trend boiling up that has gourmets and restauranteurs clammering for spots in these high-traffic hubs and could have more of us foodies saying "NO!" to the boring burger platter at TGI Fridays and "YES!" to menu items like the pork belly sliders at Atlanta International Airport's first upscale dining destination, One Flew South (spoiler alert—it's #1 on the list). 

Don't worry, if pork belly isn't your thing, Kaufman's list offers up something for every taste imaginable from authentic barbeque in Dallas/Fort Worth and fresh seafood in Seattle, to noodles and sushi in Minneapolis—home of WEC 2014 (so I can all but check that one off my list). 

Yeah, that's right, I said it. I'm creating a list of places I want to eat at the airport, and man, is writing about it making me hungry!

Moscow hotels are the most expensive in the world for business travelers, according to the latest annual hotel survey from Hogg Robinson Group (HRG). This makes a nine-year streak for them, with hotel rates increasing 4 percent in 2012.  

Around the world, overall rates increased by 1.4 percent, compared to 1 percent the previous year. Thirty-two of 55 cities with top hotel rates showed a year-on-year increase in local currency rate in 2012, compared with just 23 of 55 cities in 2011.

Brazil’s major metropolitan cities, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, showed the highest room rate increases, at 19 percent and 15 percent respectively in local currency. Latin America is showing strong growth in business travel, and of the top five cities with the highest rate increases, three were from the region. 

The U.S. as a whole recorded increased room rates as key cities such as San Francisco and Atlanta hosted strong convention business. The one exception was Washington, D.C., where rates dropped by 14 percent as corporate demand softened.

Hotel rates grew significantly in several cities across the U.K., including in Belfast where average room rates grew 8 percent, and in London, Aberdeen and Liverpool, where average room rates grew by 5 percent. The London hotel market demonstrated resilience in the face of global economic turmoil, aided by the 2012 Olympic Games and Jubilee demand. 

Here are the top 10 cities for most expensive hotels for business travelers:  

1. Moscow
2. Lagos
3. New York City
4. Hong Kong
5. Zurich
6. Geneva
7. Rio de Janeiro
8. Paris
9. Sydney
10. Stockholm

Here's a little something something that came across the PR Newswire that looks interesting. Take it away, press release:

Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport will launch a new DFW Customer Rewards Program in June, rewarding travelers for airport purchases and building on its well-earned reputation as one of the best airports in the world for customer service. Travelers participating in the program will be eligible to earn frequent flyer miles or points for every qualifying purchase made at DFW airport such as parking, retail and concessions. Airlines participating in the program include DFW's major hub carrier American Airlines, along with Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Frontier, United and US Airways.

"The DFW Customer Rewards Program is a great opportunity for travelers to benefit even more from the amenities they now value at DFW," said Jeff Fegan, CEO of DFW airport. "Whether spending money on parking, a gift or a quick bite to eat, travelers are now able to accumulate miles to redeem with their favorite airline, simply by buying what they're already buying at the airport."

The DFW Customer Rewards Program will offer travelers the ability to earn airline miles every time they make a qualifying purchase at the airport, whether on parking, restaurants and retail outlets, services, and airport hotels such as the Grand Hyatt or even Paradise 4 Paws, the pet hotel at DFW airport. DFW is partnering with Thanks Again LLC to offer the program.

"DFW will be the only airport in the country that offers its customers miles for the total experience: on-airport parking, shopping and dining, and hotel stays at all of our properties," said Ken Buchanan, DFW's executive vice president for revenue management. "We are always looking for ways to improve the passenger experience at DFW airport and this is one way we can reward our customers for their loyal business."

To take advantage of this new opportunity to earn airline miles at DFW airport, travelers can register at www.thanksagain.com, by registering with a debit or credit card of choice. Thanks Again already has a presence in more than 170 U.S. and Canadian airports, with 14 airport-wide programs. 

"Our customers have told us that they value airline miles as a reward, so we are happy to partner with Thanks Again to respond to that request," said Sharon McCloskey, DFW vice president for marketing. "And DFW customers will be able to earn miles at many other airports around the nation as well."

Some of the airports already involved include Miami International, Houston Intercontinental, New York LaGuardia Airport, JFK International, Newark Liberty International, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, Portland International, the Port of Seattle and Tulsa International Airport.

DFW airport plans to launch its Customer Rewards Program in June 2013, just in time for the busy summer travel season.

Is this something you'd sign up for? 

Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) recently published its "CWT Travel Management Priorities" report based on an international survey of nearly 800 travel managers. The scope of the survey includes companies with mid-sized national programs and an annual travel spend in the range of US$2 million as well as companies with large, international travel programs with an annual travel spend of more than US$100 million.

The report shows that the overall ranking of priorities for 2013 remains very similar to the order of priorities for 2012. Travel buyers intend to focus on areas representing the greatest savings opportunities rather than those associated with the traveler experience. This is true regardless of the size of the company, the industry type, the budget spent on travel or the scope of the travel program.

"The challenging economic climate means that there is continued pressure on buyers to both reduce costs and manage travel in a more cost-effective way," said Christophe Renard, CWT vice president marketing, communications and business intelligence. "As air and ground travel represents the majority of spend within a travel program, it is not surprising that it is the No. 1 priority for most travel buyers, even though it is an area that is already well advanced in terms of optimization."

The measures that travel managers plan to take to achieve these objectives vary according to region. While North American travel buyers are aiming to further consolidate their programs and standardize processes, their counterparts in Asia-Pacific are intending to focus more on improving travel compliance and mandating preferred booking channels; Latin American travel buyers are concentrating on implementing advanced booking rules and strengthening car rental policies, whereas travel buyers from Europe, the Middle East and Africa are tightening air and rail policies to drive down air and ground costs.

Travel buyers with global responsibility are the only category of buyers to tackle traveler compliance with technology 2.0. Their top three actions to achieve this target include offering mobile services to travelers, implementing a social media tool or apps and providing their travelers with a Web-based traveler portal. To achieve the same objective, regional travel buyers are looking at more traditional actions such as communication and training on policy.

"Travel managers with a global scope are more likely to test new procedures and techniques," Renard said. "They tend to be very advanced in optimizing their travel programs and as a result, they are often looking to address new challenges with innovative methods."

The second part of the report covers the business travel trends for 2013 and digs into the changes that travel buyers are likely to see over the year and the challenges they will be faced with in the current economic climate and evolving business travel landscape. From a pricing perspective, it is likely that global inflation will hit travel prices modestly overall, with increases of under 5 percent; in addition, travel managers will need to monitor programs and suppliers closely, paying particular attention to areas such as rising ancillary fees and fuel surcharges. 

Changes in technology will affect the travel process with consumer-influenced technology increasingly finding its way into corporate travel through services such as travel review sites and mobile apps specifically designed for business travelers.

Travel management 2.0 will also be a major theme in 2013 as companies seek to find the right balance between exercising the right level of control over traveler booking behaviors while ensuring that travel is still “managed” for budgetary, and safety and security reasons. 

Finally, risk management will also play a key role as companies send travelers to increasingly high risk areas and duty of care during business travel becomes an integral part of a company’s legal responsibility to its employees.

Hilton Worldwide and Marriott International addressed global business and travel industry leaders this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to urge governments to move quickly to adopt “Smart Visa” policies, which stimulate global travel, create new jobs and spur economic development. The two companies represent more than 7,000 hotels in 90 countries, which include 600,000 employees at these owned, managed and franchised properties. They are working together with the World Economic Forum Governors for the aviation, travel and tourism industry to promote global action toward “Smart Visa” policies regionally by 2015 and globally by 2020.

Smart Visas refer to safe, secure and sustainable solutions that promote mobility, maximize the use of technology and expand programs that facilitate travel while removing process inefficiencies caused by arduous visa requirements. As a result of Smart Visa policies, more data is collected and shared across borders, creating enhanced security, efficiencies that reduce government spending and enhanced customer experience.

“In 2012, the U.N. World Tourism Organization reported that more than one billion people traveled outside their borders—a tremendous catalyst for global commerce and new jobs,” said Christopher J. Nassetta, president and CEO of Hilton Worldwide. “We are here at the World Economic Forum to tackle complex and challenging economic, social, environmental and political issues. Enabling greater international travel is the low-hanging fruit that can create significant economic growth and employment.”

“Smart governments are thinking about international travel and tourism as trade, and they are doing everything they can to remove barriers and be more strategic in addressing visas and other access issues that discourage people from traveling and doing business,” said Arne Sorenson, president and CEO of Marriott International. “While we recognize that security remains a top concern, we call on the world leaders here at Davos to be visionary about a future world of interconnected markets where moving travelers more easily will allow more people to see the world and result in two billion world travelers in the next decade.”

Many countries are recognizing the economic benefits of international travel and tourism and making secure and convenient travel a policy priority, including Turkey, which has more than doubled international visitation in a decade by providing visas on arrival; China, which has implemented visa-free travel for three days to Beijing for 45 countries; Russia, which is encouraging visa-free travel to and from the European Union; and Australia and the United Arab Emirates, which have been utilizing electronic visas, where the process is online and takes minutes, not days or weeks. The ASEAN nations are moving to a common regional visa to promote economic development.

Last year, President Obama announced the development of a national travel and tourism policy. Since then, the U.S. has made significant progress, with an increase in international arrivals as the visa waiver program was expanded to Taiwan and wait times for in-person interviews, most notably in China, Brazil and Mexico, were brought down to under one week. 

“We applaud those governments who are taking visionary approaches to facilitating travel, enhancing economies and providing employment opportunities worldwide," Nassetta and Sorenson said. "We view the private sector and Forum leaders as powerful partners to ensure progress continues so that global visa and entry policies are augmenting and enhancing the free-flow of goods, services, and people."

Globally, at nearly US$6 trillion in 2011, or 9.1 percent of total worldwide GDP, travel and tourism contributes more to world economies than some of the largest manufacturing sectors, including automotive and chemicals. The industry directly employs 98 million people, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.

(Story materials from Marriott International.)

The U.S. Travel Association is launching “Travel Effect,” a multiyear, multimillion-dollar advocacy and awareness campaign to establish the link between travel and its effect on relationships, education, business and communities .

“What we’ve long known anecdotally, we will now prove through authoritative research: travel has a positive effect on health, relationships, business performance and the well-being of communities,” said Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association. “Travel Effect will take new research and drive earned media to communicate travel’s benefits to the U.S. economy, to local communities, and to good health, strong families and an improved quality of life.”

At Travel Effect’s core are research projects and studies that will demonstrate the indispensable benefits travel brings to people’s lives, their careers and their communities. Current research underway examines travel’s effect on relationships and its power to create lasting memories for children and adults. Additional projects include measuring the bottom-line impact of business travel and the impact of government meetings on government operations, private-sector development and local communities.

The campaign will employ both earned and paid media to convey research findings, with an emphasis on social media. Research findings and more information will be available at www.traveleffect.com. Additionally, state and district data that provide key travel impact measurements formerly available on poweroftravel.org will be on the Travel Effect website.

Travel Effect’s first research project of 2013, a study on the effect travel has on relationships, will be released in February.

I've recently fallen in love with Skift, a "travel intelligence media company that offers news, information, data, tools and services to professionals in the travel industry and professional travelers to help them make smart decisions about travel."

After MPIWeb.org (of course), it's my go-to source for travel news. And while if focuses more on hospitality and consumer travel, I do think meeting professionals can find valuable information on the site. 

One valuable section is SkiftSocial, a data dashboard for travel industry brands. 

"Virtually every brand—from airline giants to small city tourism bureaus—is now living in a social media-driven world and has built up strategies for it," wrote Jason Clampet, SkiftSocial co-founder and head of content. "But how effective are they? SkiftSocial is a window that allows the travel industry to discover the latest patterns and trends, and gain insight into how companies project themselves in the new social-driven world.

"With SkiftSocial, readers can compare the Twitter and Facebook efforts made by airports, destinations, media brands, lodging brands, airlines, digital brands, cruise lines, and railways," he continued. "You can see who’s tweeting the most, which airlines are engaging customers the best, or which media brand knows a thing or two about Facebook."

For example, when you select Wynn Las Vegas, you see that the hotel has sent 70 tweets in the last 14 days, 20 Facebook posts in the last two weeks, and that it takes about eight hours for Wynn Las Vegas to reply to a post on Facebook (at the time of this blog entry). You can also view recent Twitter and Facebook conversations and highly liked tweets and posts.  

Compare Wynn's social media data to another Las Vegas property, Mandalay Bay (home of WEC 2013!). It has 51 tweets in the last 14 days, 17 Facebook posts in the last two weeks, and it takes about one hour to reply to a post on Facebook.   

This type of information is exciting, because it lets people know which companies have their stuff together when it comes to social media and can help you identify industry trends. Also, if I was planning a meeting or event, I'd want to work with the companies that understand and implement social media well. 

Let's hear from you. How would you use this data? What's important about it to you? Please let us know in the comments. 

I recently read in the Dallas Morning News about this innovative startup car rental company. Silvercar is trying a new approach to renting cars. You know the drill:

1. Reserve your car online or ahead of time (hopefully)
2. Stand in line at the car rental counter (regardless of a reservation)
3. Make sure the reservation is correct
4. Sign your life away (and decline the extra insurance)
5. Get your keys
6. Find the car in the mass of other cars in the lot
7. Be on your way
8. Hope the bill is right when you return your car

Silvercar’s motto is “No line. No counter. No hassle.” You reserve your car through their app (iPhone and Android). At the airport, you take a short shuttle ride to the lot, scan the QR code on your car and the keys are waiting for you inside. They only use silver Audi A4's, which rent for the similar rate of a Chevy Malibu (full size) at the other rental agencies. Except this has all these cool technology and features.

• Multimedia, in-dash navigation system
• SiriusXM satellite radio 
• In-car Wi-fi
• Bluetooth pairing
• Toll tracking
• Audi quattro all-wheel drive
• Leather seats
• Road-side Safety assistance

Once you’re ready to return your car, your receipt is sent to your device. Pretty simple and seamless.

They’re piloting their business in the DFW area. We’ll see how it does. Maybe other car rental companies should take note. 

The only problem I’d have is driving a silver car. After years of having them in our family (and not being able to find your car in any parking lot among all the other silver, white and tan cars out there), we are now driving royal blue cars. But their idea is a good one, as apparently silver is the color of choice for a lot of drivers!

Header Image audiusa.com

The U.S. Travel Association recently projected increases in leisure, business and international inbound travel next year will enable the industry to add 98,800 U.S. jobs by the end of 2013. Leisure travel is expected to rise 1.2 percent, business travel is projected to increase nearly 1 percent and international inbound travel will increase 4 percent. These job gains will increase direct travel industry employment to more than 7.6 million jobs next year.

“The focus of this election season has been how to put Americans back to work, and our industry is uniquely capable of adapting to economic upswings and creating jobs,” said Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association. “Given our industry’s immense potential not only nationally, but also for local and state economies, we call on the administration and members of Congress to build a plan for economic recovery that drives significant increases in travel.”

Domestic leisure travel is expected to increase 1.2 percent in 2013, a new record high, but the growth will be at a slower pace than during the past few years. While business travel volume will slow significantly next year to less than 1 percent, the number of business trips has grown steadily since the downturn in 2009 and is expected to see more positive growth in 2014. Total domestic travel spending, including leisure and business travel, will increase 3 percent.

“While the growth rate is more moderate than in previous years, leisure travel remains at an all-time high and is an indicator of rising consumer confidence,” said David Huether, senior vice president of research and economics for the U.S. Travel Association. “Businesses continue to have a heightened focus on the value and bottom-line benefits of travel. We feel the slight increase in business travel next year continues to reflect demand for face-to-face meetings that drive growth and productivity.”

Total international inbound travel will increase 4 percent in 2013 while spending will grow 7.1 percent. The importance of global travel to the U.S. economy continues to increase with international travelers now accounting for 15.1 percent of total travel spending in the U.S., up from 14.3 percent in 2011.

Overseas travel to the U.S. (excluding Canada and Mexico) will grow 4.3 percent, a slight decrease from last year’s growth of 4.8 percent. While the numbers continue to trend upward, any slowdown in travel growth is of concern because overseas travelers contribute significantly more to the U.S. economy, spending an average of $4,300 per trip.