Two well-known pilots offered their support and encouragement for the “On the Fly” Seminars yesterday, and I thought I’d express my appreciation here.
Dennis J. Flanagan, better known as Captain Denny, wrote in an e-mail message that he really liked my idea for the seminars. “Your seminars could make a difference in a lot of lives,” he said. “You could change their attitude about air travel and lower their stress level by teaching them the rules of the travel game.”
Several hours later, I received a message from Patrick Smith, a pilot and columnist for Salon.com, who very kindly wrote this for use in promotional materials for the “On the Fly” Seminars:
“On the web and in print, business travel gurus are a dime a dozen these days. The difference is, Nick Kralev is smarter than all of them, and his insights will give you an edge that the others cannot.”
This almost never happens, but I’m at a loss for words…
Continue reading about Support for seminars from two famous pilots
I’m usually cautious about accepting invitations to visit Russia, because of the obscene amount of cigarette smoke I’m forced to put up with, but this time I was rather pleased, indeed.
I was invited by RIA Novosty, the news agency, to attend a conference on Afghan drug production, which was opened by President Dmitry Medvedev. I doubt he was the reason for the smoking ban anywhere in the conference center, but whoever decided to implement that policy deserves a big thank-you. Russian staff and participants actually stood outside the building to smoke and no one violated the ban. Very impressive.
If only the Egyptians could do the same…
The conference center belonged to the Swissôtel Krasnye Holmy in the Russian capital. Usually, if I make hotel decisions when I travel, I choose either a Hilton or Starwood property, because of my top elite status with those two chains. That way, not only do I get bonus points for my stays, but I also enjoy elite benefits, such as free room upgrades, free breakfast even if it’s not included in the room rate, executive lounge access and, with Starwood, free Internet.
This time, the choice wasn’t mine, and I was a bit concerned about how I’d be treated at the Swissôtel as a non-elite guest. But my concerns were unfounded. Although I couldn’t use the lounge, my room had everything an upgraded room would have at a Hilton or Starwood hotel, including a bathrobe and slippers, and breakfast was also provided.
I did have to pay for Internet access — about $25 a day — but I have to do that even as a Diamond Hilton member. As I wrote in March, Hilton is one of the major chains resisting the trend of offering top elites free Internet. In Moscow, free access was provided at the conference center, so I only had to pay for one day, before the forum began.
What most impressed me at the Swissôtel was the peace and quiet I enjoyed in my room. That hotel must have some of the least noisy elevators I’ve ever seen. You could barely hear them, even if you stood right in front of their doors.
In addition, the housekeeping staff was probably the quietest I’ve encountered. Typically, I’d be awaken early in the morning by door banging or maids talking loudly to each other as if they were in a park, and the thin walls of many U.S. hotels make it even worse. This time, had I not seen housekeeping staff in the corridor, I wouldn’t have known there were working.
Continue reading about Great hotel and non-smoking conference in Moscow
It doesn’t happen very often that I fly a new route on United Airlines, especially out of Washington — it seems I’ve flown a huge number of them. But my 467th United flight this week was on the relatively new nonstop service to Moscow.
That flight is flown on a Boeing 767, which means that it’s reconfigured with the new truly flat business-class seats. Even better, upgrading to business on that flight is usually fairly easy, and I was on a pretty high M fare, so I never had any doubt my upgrade would clear.
By the time that happened a week before the flight, I had two choices in terms of window seating: a forward-facing seat in the row before the last or a rear-facing seat in the first row of the business cabin. About six months ago, I would have chosen the first option, but after flying backward from San Francisco to Sydney in December, the direction doesn’t bother me anymore. Each couple of seats feels very much like a private compartment, and you don’t really see anything outside that compartment while seated, so you forget there are other passengers facing in a different direction. I chose the first row because it’s away from the galley and the coach cabin, which makes it quieter and less trafficked.
It was a standard United flight in terms of the service — pretty good, but nothing spectacular. My glass of water never remained empty for too long. A couple of flight attendants asked if I worked for United, because I looked familiar — that tells you how often I’m on those planes.
My routine on long-haul flights begins with changing into my plane pajamas, which are given to first-class passengers on some non-U.S. carriers — this time, I’d taken a set from Lufthansa, but I usually rotate them with sets from SWISS or Singapore Airlines. I used to change after takeoff, but by the time the seat-belt sign is off, the service has already begun, and I’d rather not be in the flight attendants’ way.
During takeoff, I read newspapers — usually the Financial Times, where I used to write, and the International Herald Tribune on flights originating outside the United States. Then I turned on my entertainment system and start a film — “Valentine’s Day” was the first one I watched. It didn’t do well at the box office when it was released in February, despite the all-star cast and the director Gary Marshall, who also did “Pretty Woman.” I thought it was good enough for a plane ride.
After dinner — not-so-tasty chicken breast and cheesecake — and Chardonnay, it was bedtime. The flight left as 5 p.m., so it was too early to sleep. I tried really hard but not very successfully. At least I had a long and nice rest in a flat bed. Later, I watched another film — the very good documentary, “Celine: Through the Eyes of the World.”
Breakfast was disappointing, as it usually is in United business — just a croissant and fruit — and way behind competition, but United has never excelled at its soft product. Only first class gets eggs for breakfast.
This was my seventh time in Moscow, but the first at Domodedovo Airport — I found it much nicer than Sheremetevo. It was my 202th airport overall, according to my profile on FlightMemory.
Continue reading about Flying new United route — rare occurrence
Doing something no one has ever done before is both exciting and scary at the same time. In other words, I can use all the help I can get to spread the word.
The “On the Fly” Seminars I mentioned in my column last week are now officially open for registration. The first classes will take place on June 25 and 26 in Washington. If you come, you will learn now to travel cheaply but luxuriously.
For a long time, one of my missions has been to encourage more people to travel — both domestically and internationally. I realize travel has become difficult in recent years, and most of the pleasure that used to come with it has been sucked out by the airline industry’s desperate attempts to lower costs.
There was a time — more than a decade ago — when sitting in the coach cabin didn’t bother me too much. Planes and air travel always excited me, and the promise of what awaited at the other end of my journey left me little time for self-pity. Plus, I’d take only a couple of trips a year.
But then I began traveling around the world for work, as the Washington Times’ diplomatic correspondent, and flying between three continents in a week in coach and enduring today’s airport routine started to seem really ugly. So I decided to look for ways to travel in business class — paying for it wasn’t an option, given my budget limitations, and the only alternative was to achieve the highest elite status by flying 100,000 miles a year.
At the beginning, that wasn’t too easy — it required me to fly on the same airline or its alliance partners. The global alliances — Star, Oneworld and SkyTeam — were not as big as they are today, and none of their member-carriers served some of the countries I went to. Even when they did, that option might not have been the cheapest.
With some creativity and strategic planning, however, I managed pretty well — and the benefits of top elite status changed my life. At the airport, priority lines, business lounges and red-carpet boarding have made the experience much less of a hassle. On board, I’ve enjoyed flat beds, great meals and on-demand entertainment, thanks to complimentary upgrades I’ve been able to confirm long before a flight.
The real challenge was how to maintain that combination of paying low fares and flying in luxury year after year. Since knowledge means power, I decided to take the power in my own hands and stop relying on travel agents or online booking engines to find me the best deals — by learning all I could about airfares and airline inventory, and by accessing raw, real-time airline data right from the source where it’s published.
Now I’ve decided to share my knowledge and experience with others. Come see for yourself.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton mentioned my departure from the Washington Times during a press conference today. Here is part of the official transcript:
MR. CROWLEY: On his last day of covering the State Department, Nick Kralev of The Washington Times.
SECRETARY CLINTON: Oh, Nick.
QUESTION: Hello.
SECRETARY CLINTON: We should sing Auld Lang Syne or something. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: Well, thank you very much even without doing it.
Madam Secretary, I’d like to ask you a couple things about the Israeli situation which, as you know, is getting more and more serious by the day. I know there are many unknowns at this point, but do you accept Israel’s argument of self-defense? And do you think that the investigation should be done by Israel or by a third independent party, as other Security Council members have said?
And more broadly, we all know there are so many moving pieces to this. There’s Turkey, there’s Israel and in the Palestinians, there’s Iran, there’s Syria. What are the implications in your mind of this situation to the peace process and in the larger issues in the Middle East? Thanks.
SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, Nick, on your last day, you’ve asked a very complicated set of interrelated questions. And let me put it into context as I respond…
Later, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley added his own best wishes:
MR. CROWLEY: But before we start, I want to pay tribute to Nick Kralev. It is our last — his last day at the — covering the beat here at the State Department. Nick, best wishes with your upcoming book project.
QUESTION: Thank you, P.J., and thanks for your work and all your help in the last year and a half.
It was time to move on, but I’m sad I’m leaving during Clinton’s tenure. She has been a great secretary to cover and travel with — and she has surprised everyone with her performance in a position she never expected to hold.
Continue reading about Clinton mentions my last day at State
