news about cheap fares and airlines from travel search engine Trabber

Asia Pacific budget carrier Jetstar is aiming to grow its Asian business by at least 30 per cent this year and is looking to open routes to Europe and North America when it takes delivery of the long-delayed Boeing 787 Dreamliner in 2012.

The move would put the Melbourne-based Qantas affiliate, which has an Asian hub in Singapore, in competition with Malaysia’s Air Asia X and potentially with some established long-haul full service carriers such as Singapore Airlines.

Jetstar group CEO Bruce Buchanan said that the company will also join Oneworld alliance, which will put it in the same team as Qantas, Cathay Pacific, British Airways and Japan Airlines.

source: stuff.co.nz

Lufthansa says it will start using Airbus A380 superjumbo jets on its route from Frankfurt to San Francisco starting in May.

The company said in an statement that from May 10 its daily flights will be able to carry up to 526 passengers — 420 in economy, 98 in business and eight in first class.

Lufthansa says it will be the first airline to have regular flights with an A380 in and out of San Francisco International Airport.

source: BusinessWeek

The deal enables customers booking with a travel agent or at a Lufthansa sales office to purchase, for example, an outward flight with Lufthansa and a return flight with Germanwings.

Passengers benefit from a greater selection of flight connections and attractive price combinations; while, Germanwings will benefit from having a stronger presence in the central reservation systems, thereby considerably expanding its international sales.

The expanded cooperation is the second step in an intensive sales  collaboration which began in September 2010 between Lufthansa and its  low-cost subsidiary.

source: traveldailynews.com

Global hotel chain Marriott has decided to pull pay-per-view porn from new hotels, according to reports in the US.

Guests in new Marriott hotels will no longer be able to view adult content through their television sets, as it moves towards internet-based on-demand entertainment.

Marriott has well over 500 hotels around the world currently approved or under construction and is the first major chain to introduce such a significant policy change regarding adult content.

source: The Independent

As one of the Europe’s largest airlines it is quite logical that Lufthansa should fly fans and spectators to Düsseldorf for the largest European television event of the year.

Lufthansa will be offering fans, who would like to follow the event live, especially affordable tickets to Düsseldorf from all over Europe on the official website of the Eurovision Song Contest.

Last year the final of the Eurovision Song Contest was witnessed by a total of 65 million television viewers, of which 14.7 million in Germany alone. The international singing contest has been hosted by the winning country since 1956.

source: The Finantial

A messy legal battle between American Airlines and Sabre, a travel-data provider, is now on hold.

Earlier this month, American sued Southlake-based Sabre Holdings Group after the company said it planned to stop distributing information about American flights later this year.

A statement issued by American on Monday said the litigation is now on hold until June 1 while the companies attempt to work out a new agreement.

source: wfaa.com

Millions of easyJet passengers face higher baggage charges under a new price-by-mile policy.

The budget airline is poised to scrap its £9 flat fee for luggage checked into a plane’s hold and charge by distance instead.

Passengers on short trips may save money but families flying further to destinations such as Crete and Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt will pay more. The changes could be announced in the next month, hitting Brits heading abroad for Easter.

On the plus side, easyJet could allow passengers to take more than one bag in the cabin for free.

source: mirror.co.uk

A former manse close to Loch Ness has been voted the best bed-and-breakfast establishment in the world.

The Old Manse at Invermoriston in the Highlands received the accolade from world travellers in the annual travellers’ choice hotel awards organised by the TripAdvisor company.

source: The Press Association

US airline Delta is trialling a new method of dealing with compensation for flight overbooking which could mark a permanent change in the way passengers are repaid.

The airline, which merged with Northwest in 2008 to form the world’s largest commercial carrier, is using a new system that allows passengers to “‘bid'” on the amount of compensation they would accept for being bumped to another flight.

In the new setup some Delta travelers in the US are asked how much they would accept for being bumped when they check-in online or at an airport kiosk.

Passengers who choose a low amount are more likely to be selected to receive the compensation and be moved, meaning that those with a higher compensation cost will be allowed on the flight.

source: The Independent

British Airways’ new parent company International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG) enjoyed a quiet opening day’s trading on the stock markets of London and the linked exchanges of Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao and Valencia on Monday.

Shares in IAG opened in the City at a price of 288.1p and closed at 287.19p after touching 289p. IAG shares in Spain finished the day at €3.31, broadly in line with the London price allowing for the exchange rate.

IAG chief executive Willie Walsh and chairman Antonio Vazquez were at the London Stock Exchange to watch trading open. Walsh said: “I’AG has a great future ahead of it. BA and Iberia are the first two airlines in IAG, but they won’t be the last. Today is the first step towards creating a multinational multi-brand airline group.’”

source: travelweekly.co.uk