So we missed our LAX to O'Hare flight this morning. The details aren't really important. They involve the Hilton's long term self-park lot, a hotel shuttle, and the lax relationship that Italian tourists have to concepts like "not holding up a bus for 25 minutes by refusing to obey passenger limit restrictions."

Anyway, when United says that they won't let you check in if you're even 90 seconds late on their 45-minute cutoff, they mean that literally. Like we said, not really important.

What is important is that the well-known rule of customer service - "find the people who can say 'Yes'" - is as true inside airports as anywhere else.

We tried to check in, failed, and then waited in that understaffed line that airlines keep open for people who don't use kiosks. After a 40-minute wait, the United employee kindly informed us that she would be happy to put us on standby. Only problem: as of 6:30am all of United's flights, up through late afternoon, were already overbooked. Her best alternative: a $150 fee for a confirmed seat some time after 4pm, an option that would also preclude us from waiting standby on any of the earlier flights. Obviously we accepted the rolling standby and proceeded to mope our way through the metal detectors and into the terminal.]]> Omri 2009-05-20T16:11:57-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/4/14/22493/7422

Jaunted contributing editor Christine M. Bord has a passion for movies and for volunteer travel. Here's her experience of combining both.

Volunteer vacations don’t have to be about saving wildlife or building houses. Most film festivals also need volunteers to make sure their events go off without a hitch. There are usually pretty good perks too. Like free movie tickets, swag, food and the opportunity to meet people with shared interests.

Two years ago, my boyfriend and I took a weekend getaway to the Big Apple and worked as volunteers for the Tribeca Film Festival. The volunteer coordinator was kind enough to schedule our boyfriend and us for the same shifts in the same theater. We took tickets, answered questions and worked the concessions stand at Tribeca Cinemas, a cool gallery, theater and event space on Varick Street. Our daily shifts only lasted about four hours giving us plenty of time to enjoy everything else the city had to offer.]]> cmb 2009-04-15T09:16:38-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/3/10/22496/8067

There are only three sure things in life: death, taxes, and the cluelessness of the guy in front of you at airport security. You can't do anything about that guy -- has he even flown since 9/11? -- but you can not be that guy with our tips to come through clean and quickly. Here are our Five Ways To Speed Through Security.

Know the roadblocks. Of course they're going to ask for your ID and boarding pass, so take it out of your wallet or purse and keep it in a death grip in your hand as you walk through. Thanks to the "shoe bomber", our shoes are going to have to come off, so if you're wearing lace-up boots, maybe start unlacing them while you're in line. And America, empty your freaking pockets before you set the X-ray off. You probably won't need your keys for the next six to eight hours anyway.]]> egw 2009-03-11T09:26:18-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/2/18/234814/973

So, you wanna take part in the Oscars but don’t have a nominated film, fancy gown or any Hollywood connections? Don't worry, there are still plenty of Oscar-related events for you too. Lindsay Lohan, you might want to take note.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences traditionally sets up bleachers along the red carpet so fans can watch all the stars arrive. Every September, they hold a week long online lottery giving away tickets for the spots. Anyone can put their name in but you have to have pretty good luck to win considering last year over 20,000 people entered but only 300 seats were available. ]]> cmb 2009-02-19T09:18:46-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/23/6310/47787

If you’re one of the expected 300,000 to 500,000 football fans flocking to South Africa for the FIFA World Cup 2010, don’t think you can just hop on a plane and go. Football fans are notoriously crazy about attending football matches (cue The White Stripes "Seven Nation Army" which has become the de facto football cheer.) You really need to start planning now.

Tickets
Tickets for the FIFA World Cup 2010 finals will go on sale on the FIFA website, starting February 20. One million out of the three million total tournament tickets available will go to international visitors – the other two million go to sponsors, teams and South African fans. Tickets are expected to cost about $136USD a piece but can vary from anything from $80 to $900, depending on which of the 64 matches tickles your fancy and how close you want to be to the action.

If you’re reading this is May 2010 and the tickets are all sold out, you can still hop on a last-minute plane over there – giant screens in public areas will be set up, and pubs, restaurants and bars are shelling out big-time on mega-size TVs ready to keep the neighbours up all night.]]> femmefatale 2009-02-05T14:05:35-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/9/11855/46615

If you were following our Chasing Michigan series, you know that the Wolverine State is in the midst of a filming boom. Sure, the productions bring funds to the local economy, but they also bring tourists hoping to be a part of cinematic history by becoming an extra. And so one of our readers, Dawn, asked:

How do you go about being an extra or have a small part in all these productions being filmed in Michigan?

Everyone, it seems, is hauling the skis out of the closet and trying to figure out how to get them to the mountain without paying a checked baggage charge. But unless you're paying for business or first class seats--which usually cover the cost of your bags--you're probably going to end up forking over some cash. But at least you have some options of who you'll be forking to:]]> pbb 2008-12-15T12:45:30-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/