Jaunted - Tag: Open Thread

The Ultimate Debate: To Buy 2-Wheel or 4-Wheel Luggage?

JetSetCD — 2010-10-26T09:43:10-05:00

We know there are strong opinions and hard evidence out there in the case of 2-wheeled luggage versus 4-wheeled luggage, and we want to hear them! You see, there comes a point in a traveler's life when such a choice must be made, and it's not always easy to pick a side. There is design, comfort, weight, brands, guarantees and overheard storage space to consider and it's a tad overwhelming when you're searching for the perfect constant travel companion.

So help out your fellow travelers; what bag do you swear by? Why does a traditional two-wheel trump the newer four-wheels, or is it the other way around? Share your position in the comments, and meantime we'll separate our own two and four-wheelers to different sides of the ring.

[Photos: loungerie, superciliiousness]

Screw, Marry or Kill: United, American or Delta?

juliana — 2010-09-14T17:49:56-05:00

You know that game you and your friends played in high school where you would ask each other to name three celebrities that you would rather Screw, Marry or Kill? Then after you got a little drunk you would pick people that you actually knew in real life and that's when all the true feelings about the kids in your class would come out?

Well, let's get nostalgic this afternoon and play the game with three legacy carriers—United Airlines, American Airlines and Delta Airlines.

Putting prices, destinations and fleet size aside, we're curious to know who you've had the consistently best, or consistently worse, experiences flying. Now, we've all had different experiences on different flights across all airlines so for some of you, this game could be tricky. For example: our travel buddy flew United from LAX to Chicago while we flew out on American. An avowed United disliker, we pitied our buddy and prayed that his baggage would arrive when he landed. Instead, it turned out we had a worse flight than he did.

To Megabus or BoltBus? That is the Question

JetSetCD — 2010-07-12T13:31:05-05:00

In a desperate bid to escape the humid, 95+ temperatures of a summer New York City, we spent this last weekend two hours south in Philadelphia, where it's about three degrees cooler. It was a last-minute decision, and after seeing that Amtrak wanted $45+ per person for a one-way, two-hour ride on a non-Acela between the cities, we immediately turned to the budget bus options, because they at least have WiFi.

So, the dilemma: to Megabus or BoltBus?

Jetblue Shows Off an Airplane So Small It'll Fit In Your Garage

JetSetCD — 2010-04-23T15:14:14-05:00

When you walk into Jetblue's Terminal 5 at JFK these days, you'll find a mini aviation museum slowing growing in their giant, open marketplace area. First, there was a giant jet engine on display, with an interactive display about airplanes and even a button you can push to make the engine spin. But their newest addition, to help celebrate Jetblue's tenth anniversary, reminds us of the days when we all thought we'd have jetpacks in the future; they're now exhibiting a bite-sized private jet with folding wings.

It's called the Icon A5, and we'd describe as the moped of airplanes even if the Icon calls itself "the very latest in sport aircraft design." To buy one, you'll have to lay down $135,000 and pledge to not carry anymore than 60lbs baggage onboard. Not that there's room for it anyway; the two-seater has wings that fold back for storage and a cozy cabin to keep it small enough to fit in someone's garage. Its max speed is 120 mph and its max distance is 345 miles.

What Weird Food Keeps You Coming Back To A Country?

JetSetCD — 2010-02-11T16:00:16-05:00

One night, we were stuck sleeping underneath the departures board at London-Stansted airport, and we had very few pound coins left and a rumbling tummy, begging for food. So we went scrounging around, and that's when we saw them, our future obsession: potato chips in elaborate flavors. There was "Italian Sausage," "Prawn Cocktail," and even "Angus Steak."

Ever since then, we've always attempted to track down the craziest flavor crisps on subsequent trips to Britain. So it makes us wonder what special food items you look forward to purchasing on trips...are you partial to the interesting cereals of Italy? How about the cheeses of Mexico?

Or maybe you just have a great flavor of potato chips to recommend to us? We've already exhausted the offerings at Tesco and Marks & Spencer, so we're in your hands. So...what food items do you look forward to buying when you're abroad?

Related Stories:
· Food Travel [Jaunted]

[Photo: Jaunted]

Have You Ever Caught the TSA Misbehaving?

JetSetCD — 2010-01-20T09:30:03-05:00

This has not been the season for the Transportation Security Administration, what with their leaking of sensitive documents, the attempted crotch bombing on Christmas Day, the resulting knee-jerk security rules they laid down, the "oops, our bad!" lawsuits they sent to journalists and then retracted, and so much more.

Sometimes our hate for them and the vitroil spewed at the TSA by others online make us wonder at times if they really deserve it, and the answer to that is yes—yes they do. Working an airport security job should not be considered a step up from being behind the counter at Taco Bell, and yet it is.

So, with such brilliant employees (sarcasm!) dealing with millions of cranky, inconvenienced and confused flyers every day, mistakes are bound to be made and bored agents are bound to play solitare...wait, what did we just say?

Security officers caught red-handed

Paris: Be Honest, How Long Did You Really Spend Inside The Louvre?

juliana — 2009-08-04T16:30:57-05:00

This recent article in the New York Times has us feeling a little sheepish. You see, last fall we went to the Louvre in glorious Paris and we did a predictably touristy trip around the museum.

First stop, of course, was the Mona Lisa. Then we decided to take an audio tour that delved into the history of the museum starting with its beginnings as a fortress in the 13th century. As for the art itself, um, yeah, it was extensive. But do we remember much of it? No, not really. We didn't even snap that many pictures (does the picture of the Mona Lisa condoms on Rue de Rivoli count?) And we were out of the museum in just under two hours, only visiting two wings. And the NY Times knows it.