My husband and I took four flights on Copa Airlines (Panama City, Panama; 800/359-2672) in February and March 2014.
For the first flight, from Bogotá to Cartagena, Colombia, we arrived 1½ hours early at the airport, got boarding passes and flew on a half-empty plane.
Our family of five took a customized private tour of Southern Africa and Seychelles, Dec. 19, 2013-Jan. 5, 2014, that had been arranged by a US-based tour company.
On our way home from Seychelles on Jan. 5, the Kenya Airways flight that was supposed to transport us from Mahe to Nairobi, Kenya, at around 2 p.m. had mechanical problems so never left Nairobi. Kenya Air sent a different plane out, which arrived around 5 p.m. We figured we still had time to catch our British Airways flight, scheduled to fly out of Nairobi for London a little before midnight.
by Marvin Silverman; Carmel, CA
Near Karachi on June 8, Taliban militants armed with guns and explosive vests attacked Pakistan’s largest airport, Jinnah International, targeting a terminal used for cargo and special operations. At least 34 people were killed in the attack, including all 10 militants, three from having detonated their vests. The airport reopened after security forces regained control.
A spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban said that, in revenge for the killing of their leader in 2013, they had intended to hijack an airplane.
Northern Ireland is experiencing increased tourism, with fans of “Game of Thrones” arriving to visit locations where much of this popular TV series is filmed. In addition, the new Titanic Belfast museum (1 Olympic Way, Queen’s Road, Belfast) is drawing visitors in numbers well above expectations.
Scandinavian Airlines, or SAS (800/221-2350), has simplified and reduced its checked-luggage charges. To qualify for the lower charges, you must purchase your ticket online or from a ticket machine in the airport.
For a 3-week vacation I took in Panama with my wife, brother and sister-in-law in February 2014, we rented cars.
Be aware. I was informed that all car rentals in Panama include a mandatory, $16.99-per-day third-party insurance payment, which means that, often, you will end up having to pay double the price you were quoted online from a rental agency.
Bill Altaffer; San Diego, CA
I left San Diego via Asiana Airlines in June 2013, and 36 hours later I was in Kota Kinabalu (KK), Malaysia, the gateway to the Spratly Islands and my final destination. KK’s airport is new and modern — not the place I saw when I visited 25 years earlier.
My wife and I booked a cruise on Voyager, of the Voyages of Discovery line (866/623-2689), which would depart from the Port of Tokyo. I was told, at the time, by a rep at the cruise line’s Ft. Lauderdale office that they did not book flights or airport-port transfers.
Lawrence W. Schonbrun wondered why airlines seem not to offer a moderate price choice between the economy-class fare and, many times that price, a business- or first-class ticket (Feb. ’14, pg. 68).
The airline I use the most, Delta Air Lines, does offer, at a very reasonable fare, an Economy Comfort class, which provides additional legroom.