South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
‘There’s good news tonight’ for upscale rail tour operator
Most of you are too young to remember Gabriel Heatter, a radio newscaster, who, no matter how dire the country’s situation, would start off each broadcast with “There’s good news tonight,” leading into some trivial feel-good item.
That’s the context in which, given the ceaseless downpour of bad coronavirus news, I’m glad to lead off thisweek with some upbeat items.
Rocky Mountaineer, the upscale rail sightseeing tour operator, will start running in the U.S. next summer. Following its Canadian pattern of two-day excursions with an overnight hotel stop, it will operate 40 “Rockies to Red Rocks” trips between Denver and Moab, Utah, Aug. 15 through Oct. 23. The overnight hotel stop will be Glenwood Springs, Colorado, where there is a good base of hotel accommodations and restaurants. Prices will start at $1,250 per person plus tax. Travelers choose between “Silver Leaf” and “Silver Leaf Plus,” provided in singlelevel coaches designed for sightseeing, with extralarge windows, along with dining car breakfast and lunch service.
Most of the trip duplicates part of the California Zephyr route, the former Denver and Rio Grande Western main line, between Denver and Crescent Junction, but there’s no Amtrak on the freight branch line that runs 40 miles southward to Moab.
You knowabout Denver and environs— amajor city with lots to offer and plenty of air service from around the country. Moab, with its population a bit north of 5,000, isn’t much of a metropolis, but it’s the nominal gateway to two spectacular national
parks, Arches and Canyonlands— both onmy “don’t miss” parks list, along with other unique southwestern landscapes. So if you take this trip, be sure to allow at least two days in Moab, where you can rent a car or catch excursions to the parks. Local motels and restaurants are certainly adequate. And a few days in Denverwould not be a bad idea, aswell. You can fly to/from Moab through Canyonlands Field, which — at least in non-virus times— links to Denver on United Express. Otherwise, bus shuttles are available to/from Salt Lake City. Check Rocky Mountaineer for details.
Best Western is running a simple and generous promotion: Any two stays earn a free night. Eligible stays run between Nov. 24 and Jan. 31 at any Best Western branded hotel in the U.S., Canada or the Caribbean; the free-night voucher will be valid at the same hotels through March 31. If you don’t already belong to the Best Western Rewards program, you have to register at BestWestern.com. This is almost a can’t-miss deal— provided you’re up to traveling this winter.
The 737Max will fly again starting in December. That may or may not be good news, depending on how you look at the Max. My take, as I’ve
stated before, is that when it gets back up in the air, the Max will be the most thoroughly tested plane ever. I wouldn’t hesitate to get on one, but I can understand if you’re reluctant. The original Max was a kludge, which Boeing adopted rather than doing a new clean-sheet competitor to the ever-improving A320 series. The worry is that the fix for the old kludge might turn out to be a new kludge. In any event, most lines won’t start flying the Max until spring, and even then you’ll be able to see what plane you’ll be flying before you buy a ticket.
American Airlines announced itwas eliminating change penalties on almost all nonrefundable international tickets. The very basic lowest fares, however, will remain “use it or lose it.” That’s a reasonable condition, as long is the next level up doesn’t cost a fortune. By the time you read this, others have likely followed. Outrageous ticket-change fees on international tickets have long been a major pain point for consumers, so American’s move is welcome. American says its change-fee moves are “permanent,” but, in the airline business, permanent can end as quickly as after a fewweeks.