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Survive 2011's First Airport Snowpocalypse with These Jaunted Guides

Prepare for delays if, over the next few days, you're traveling...well, anywhere. Atlanta is of course functionally offline, with AirTran canceling ATL flights for the first time since 9/11 and even UPS halting traffic into the airport.

The rest of the South is doing only slightly better, with Alabama airports in huge trouble and Chattanooga flights getting scrubbed through tomorrow. States of emergency are in effect across the South, and there are snow flurries hitting airports as far west as Dallas/Fort Worth.

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With Europe Frozen Over, Lots and Lots of Travelers (and Airlines) Complaining

American travelers delayed for two days in the Midwest will be feeling lucky that they're not in Europe. Half the continent—and pretty much all of Britain—is frozen over, with many travelers expected to not get home until after Christmas. Travel reports are being brought to you by the letters H and O, the number 2, and the words "chaos," "misery" and "havoc."

But beneath all the articles about the weather itself, there's this other theme developing, where travelers are endlessly griping at British airport authorities over the weather. The Associated Press ran the headline "Anger rises as travel havoc snarls Britain, Europe," and relayed quotes from snarky politicians about how airports should have shovels or something.

Emirates had an entire article published in local media expressing their shock and disappointment that, when LHR is physically covered with ice, airplanes aren't allowed to land there. Who knew?

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Heavy Snows Cause Travel Hell as London's Gatwick Airport Closes for Third Day

[Update: 8:30am, 12/3: After closing on Tuesday and remaining so through Thursday, Gatwick reopened this morning after successfully clearing their runways. Delays are still very possible, however, as a freezing fog sets in]

The weather is pretty crazy sometimes, and this week is one of those times. BAM—it turned December and London and the rest of the UK got hit with a major winter blizzard, which has been canceling and delaying flights, trains and pretty much every other form of transportation for the last few days. Getting hit hardest is London-Gatwick Airport, who, despite their persistent efforts to clear the runways of snow and get planes de-iced, have had to close for the three days straight. They may reopen tomorrow, but then again, they may not.

The other four London airports have been trying to pick up the slack, but with their own snowdrifts and high winds to contend with, the going sure isn't easy. The flight delays and cancellations aren't approaching the high levels that airports saw earlier this year, during the ash cloud of Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull, so at least they don't resemble shantytowns...yet.

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British Airways Passengers Will Now Face Snow Delays Instead of Strike

So it turns out the biggest issue impacting travel to and from London over the Christmas holiday will be the arrival of fresh snow, instead of the now-averted British Airways Strike. After eight inches of snow fell in Kent, Sussex and Essex, and a few inches in London, flights from London's Gatwick, Luton, City and Heathrow airports have met with a rash of cancellations and delays.

But because of the panic of the British Airways strike threats earlier this week, many travelers opted to grab earlier flights, the ones which are now affected by the snow. To hear the worst of it, we swung by BusinessTraveller and found that flights to Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted are severely affected, Gatwick had their runway closed earlier, London City Airport was completely closed but just reopened, and easyJet cancelled a slew of flights, which you can see a list of here.

If you're trying to fly to or from the London area, keep your web browser tuned to your airline's website, and it would be pretty smart to install FlightStats' mobile apps on your smartphone, where you can keep up to date with your flight delays and information on the go.

Related Stories:
· Snow causes disruption at UK airports [Business Traveller]
· More Travel Chaos as Big Freeze Continues [Sky News]
· Weather Travel [Jaunted]

[Photo: Na :-/]

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Hurricane Dean Lands in Mexico, Tourists React

After gaining plenty of strength last night, Hurricane Dean made landfall on Mexico's Yucatan coast Tuesday morning as a beast of a Category 5 storm. Dean's eye came ashore around 4:30 a.m. just north of Chetumal, the capital of Quintana Roo. Winds were over 165 mph, and Dean, which is reportedly a storm the size of Texas, will affect the entire Yucatan peninsula.

Tourists, who mostly inhabit Cancun and Cozumel, which are well north of the eye, were frantically trying to get seats on the last planes out before the storm last night. Reportedly. Of the 20,000 tourists in Quintana Roo, about 13,000 had been evacuated.

The above photo of a Cancun beach near the Oasis Cancun Hotel was taken yesterday and shows a definite calm before the storm. Tourists seem to be trying to milk every last second of beach time even as the hotel they are staying in boards up the resort windows and a Cat 5 storm lurks less than 24 hours away.

Stuck in Cancun? Let us know what the scene is like.

Related Stories:
· Hurricane Dean's Path to the Yucatan Peninsula [Jaunted]
· Hurricane Dean Travel Report [Jaunted]
· Cancun Hotels [HotelChatter]

[Photo: brits in cancun]

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Hurricane Dean's Path To The Yucatán Peninsula

Playa del Carmen is empty and the Cancún airport is full of tourists trying to jet back home, many are trying to get aboard the "ferry" flights designated for evacuation. After two or more days of waiting, plenty of people are still camping out on the airport floor, despite what Barger says. Still, by the time Dean reaches the Yucatan tomorrow morning more than 50,000 tourists will have been evacuated -- not bad.

What to do if you are in Mexico or going to Mexico in the next couple of days? Be patient and flexible. Most airlines will issue you credit in a situation like this, as will most hotels, but be sure to read the fine print.

Back of the envelope travel guide to Hurricane Dean:

· Tourists Flee Cancun [TheAge]
· What Travelers Need To Know About Hurricane Dean [Elliott]
· Yucatán Peninsula, battening down for hurricane Dean [CSMonitor]
· Hurricane Dean Tracker [Weather.com]
· Hurricane Dean [National Hurricane Center]
· Cancun Hotels [HotelChatter]

[Photo: Eduardo Verdugo/AP]

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Hurricane Dean Travel Report

Hurricane Dean and its 150 mile-per-hour winds are currently heading for Mexico's Yucatan after battering Jamaica this weekend. Dean swept through Jamaica yesterday, knocking out power, ripping off roofs, and flooding many streets. However, throughout the ordeal Flickr photographer Robert Birkenes was able to take plenty of shots, including the one above, which some have guessed is a shot of Jamaica's Prime Minister checking out hurricane damage. Throughout the storm, Robert's internet connection apparently held up, for the most part, which is truly amazing.

This past weekend the storm brushed past the eastern and southern areas of the region including Martinique, St. Kitts and St. Lucia on Friday and headed straight for Jamaica and the Cayman Islands yesterday. Dean's landfall in Cancun and the Yucatan Peninsula is expected today.

Both airports on Jamaica were closed, with Air Jamaica cancelling all flights and rearranging travel plans for tourists. Major tour operators like Funjet and Apple Vacations let customers rebook trips to affected and threatened destinations at no extra charge. Other airlines such as Delta and Northwest waived change penalties and added extra flights to get tourists out of Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cancun. Cruises already en route to the area changed course to avoid the storm and headed to further eastern ports of call. If you are headed to the area this week or had travel plans, contact your airline or travel provider directly before making any moves of course!.

Related Stories:
· Air travel, cruises altered to avoid Dean [USA Today]

[Photo: Robert Birkenes]