Airlines are increasing baggage fees and the cost of checking two bags can now be more than the cost of the airline ticket –

Last week United Airlines increased its checked baggage fee by $5 to $35 for the first bag and $45 for a second bag. This increase follows the increase by JetBlue Airways in January. If history repeats itself all the other airlines will soon follow suit. The round trip cost of checking two bags is now $160. I recently checked on a flight from Chicago to Minneapolis and the RT airfare was $127. This means if you checked in two pieces of luggage you will pay more for the luggage ($160) than you pay for the airline ticket ($127). WOW!

Simply not shaking hands and washing your hands may be the best two preventions against the Coronavirus –

My good friend Jack Zohner last week wrote an article in our local newspaper about the poor hygiene of Americans today and how even the simple washing of hands can prevent a lot of transfer of bacteria. Jack says the most common way that viruses are spread is by the physical transfer of viruses from our hands. He also pointed out how our cultural history of shaking hands is also actually a common way to transfer all the bad germs to our friends. It is a great article and should remind us all that we should not take personal hygiene so lightly in the future. CLICK HERE to read his article. P.S. You don’t even want to know how many germs are on your cell phone!

An airline fee for using corporate credit cards to purchase airline tickets could be just around the corner in the U.S.  –

Recently British Airways announced they were increasing the fees they charge travelers to use a corporate credit card to purchase an airline ticket in Europe. The fee ranges from 1% to 1.75% with a cap of roughly $25. This fee has been around for years and I have been predicting that some U.S. airlines might try to push the idea in the states this year. This would raise a lot of revenue for the airlines and with the coronavirus hurting the airline profits maybe this gives them another way to raise revenue. Fortunately, the E.U. prohibits airlines from charging a credit card fee on personal credit cards but companies that use a company credit card to charge their airline tickets in the U.S. may someday get hit with another fee.

Warning! Your current driver’s license may not allow you through security after October 1 if you don’t have a gold or black star on the front panel –

In 2005 Congress passed the Real I.D. law that required a standard for identification on driver’s licenses, etc. For the last 15 years, they have not enforced the law but that all changes on October 1, 2020. In the last 15 years states have been scrambling to come up with ways to comply with the law. Only recently have many states seen their state drivers licenses be approved as REAL ID-compliant by the Feds. Here is the problem. Even if your state has recently been approved by REAL ID and has started to issue REAL ID drivers licenses the driver’s license in your wallet may be the old license and not allow you to clear airport security after October 1, 2020. Please pull out your wallet and see if you have a gold or black star on it which means you are good to go. If not you will need to get a new license that is REAL ID-compliant to fly later this year. One option is you can also use a passport for identification if your driver’s license does not work. CLICK HERE for a good article about this issue. 

Greece with Women of Nebraska – don’t miss it! – 

Our first women-only trip to Greece took off in 2018 and was one of our most successful tours ever. We are back again this year, September 10-23, with an amazing journey to the “Country chosen by the Gods”. Experience the known sites; the Parthenon, Delphi, Ancient Olympia, and Santorini. The most powerful thing about this journey though is to visit places off the beaten path. The island of Naxos is one of those with its white marble traditions and local cheese production, ancient villages, stunning beaches, and the most friendly locals. The monasteries of Meteora and Hosios Loucas open their behind-the-scene doors to our group. Lunch at Kyria (Mrs.) Ketty’s, an olive oil experience and course in the fields of an ancient olive grove, and a private hands-on cooking class are some of the benefits of traveling with a group of max. 20. We have a great pair-and-share program if you are a solo traveler. CLICK HERE to see the detailed tour program and call or email Beth to sign up today, (402) 435-8888 or GroupDepartment@executivetravel.com. Limited spots left.