Category Archives: travel

The benefits of starting from scratch

Posted on August 8, 2009 by Rakesh Agrawal

Today marks the second anniversary of the launch of Virgin America, an upstart carrier that has inspired many loyal followers. Virgin America is a clear example of the benefits of starting from scratch. Among Virgin’s features: Brand new planes. Cheerful … Continue reading →

Posted in airlines, customer service, travel | 4 Comments

Online at 36,000 feet: trying Gogo WiFi on board

Posted on May 29, 2009 by Rakesh Agrawal

I tried inflight WiFi last week aboard Virgin America. The day I flew happened to be the same day Virgin became the first U.S. airline to offer Internet access across its entire fleet. I live tweeted and uploaded pictures to … Continue reading →

Posted in airlines, travel, twitter | 2 Comments

A wow experience from United Airlines. Wow.

Posted on May 4, 2009 by Rakesh Agrawal

It’s rare these days that a company impresses with customer service. It’s even rarer when that company is an airline, especially an American airline. That’s the experience I had last week when I was flying home from New Orleans on … Continue reading →

Posted in airlines, customer service, travel | 15 Comments

More bad news for newspapers: hotels going green

Posted on March 16, 2009 by Rakesh Agrawal

This picture should send shivers down the spines of executives at USA Today headquarters in McLean, Va. For at least as long as I’ve been traveling for business (13 years and counting), a USA Today in front of the hotel … Continue reading →

Posted in hotels, journalism, media, newspapers, travel | 3 Comments

The hospitality industry gets more inhospitable

Posted on March 3, 2009 by Rakesh Agrawal

For an industry that markets itself as catering to the whims of its guests, the hotel industry sure goes out of its way to make a bad final impression. I just had a wonderful stay at the Westin Resort & … Continue reading →

Posted in hotels, travel | 1 Comment

Bad UX at Sea-Tac airport

Posted on September 4, 2008 by Rakesh Agrawal

See those black spots toward the top of the picture, about 30 feet above the ground? Those are flight arrival and departure displays. Really. It’s not just the height that’s a problem; the displays face a large glass wall. When … Continue reading →

Posted in rocky's travel, travel, ui | Comments Off

Sea-Tac arming grungy terrorists

Posted on September 4, 2008 by Rakesh Agrawal

Seen post security at Sea-Tac. Someone call the TSA and have their metal knives confiscated!

Posted in random, travel | Comments Off

The ad is a lie

Posted on August 31, 2008 by Rakesh Agrawal

While watching the Olympics, I was struck by a gorgeous animated ad. A lobster conducts an orchestra of other sea creatures playing Gershwin. As soon as I recognized Rhapsody in Blue, I knew it had to be a United Airlines … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising, airlines, travel | 2 Comments

Colgate squeezes out a product for a niche market

Posted on July 8, 2008 by Rakesh Agrawal

Kudos to Colgate-Palmolive for responding to a market need: three ounce tubes of toothpaste that fit into baggies that you can get take through airport security. I was pleasantly surprised to find this at Target before a recent trip. (I … Continue reading →

Posted in random, terrorism, travel | 1 Comment

Occasional reader – Gas prices, trashing hotels, brain chemistry, hunger cafes

Posted on June 18, 2008 by Rakesh Agrawal

Some interesting reads from the past few weeks: Top Car Dealer Says High Gas Prices Are Good for the U.S. Auto Industry (WSJ) — The CEO of AutoNation views high gas prices as just what we need to spur innovation … Continue reading →

Posted in reader, travel, weekly reader | Comments Off