Travel expert Francesca Page joins Cheddar News to
recap Memorial Day weekend travel and offer summer travel tips to consumers.

Between Bells

How to Prepare For Summer Travel Amid Mass Delays and Cancellations

Welcome back to between bells everyone. Summer travel Is off to a turbulent start. Total flight delays for memorial day hitting over 4000 with total cancelations hitting over 400. That's just over the holiday. However, the weekend in total was a grim start for those looking to head out on a flight. Nearly 7000 flights worldwide were canceled over the long weekend for more on this, we're joined now by travel expert Francesca page. Welcome to the show Francesca. A lot of unhappy travelers this weekend. Are these flights being canceled or delayed because should we expect this all summer long? Right well according to airlines like Delta and American, these delays and cancelations were the result of severe weather in Miami and Denver. However, they are also the product of the travel surge coming this summer. Combined with airlines reducing service due to fuel costs, covid cases and lack of staff. Now the pandemic exasperated a pilot shortage by slowing down training and hiring whilst creating a wave of early retirements in order to cut back on labor bills. Now the problem is that the process to become airline qualified in the U. S. Is lengthy and expensive. Making the barrier to entry high. Now this combined with the rising cost of fuel and gas Prices are going to rise and there will inevitably be some disruptions. Yet despite this, the pent up demand for travel means that people are definitely going to be out and about this year. The reason for that is this time last year we were still coming off of COVID-19 restrictions and not everything was open. Now there's also fewer mask mandates and fewer restrictions. So there's so many factors here, I want to read some statistics for viewers here. This is according to flight where Delta canceled most flights among major U. S. Airlines canceling 100 and 33 flights on monday 4% of its operation. Why are we seeing such a high number of cancelations is just the factors you mentioned. It is really to do with the factors that I have mentioned there. And I think the thing is that travelers need to start preparing for alternatives, especially given the rise in price for flights. There's a lot of ways that they can best prepare to travel this summer. Think outside the box plan ahead. Maybe this isn't the year to fork out for expensive flights and expensive destinations. Take into consideration how far you want to go, your mode of transportation, the size of your family and how many days you can afford to be away. You know, I know in my family, after a few years of feeling disconnected from culture and the outdoors, we're looking to include that in our travel without having to pay to go aboard. And I've recently come across really great picturesque destinations like raised town lake Pennsylvania, which grants access to the East Broad Top Railroad 150 year old railroad that recently started running again and it's a national historic landmark. The train allows visitors to step back in time on a train ride through the natural landscape aboard. The only original narrow gauge railroad east of the Rocky Mountains still in operation. And the best part is that train tickets are only $20 for an adult and $18 for a child. So you don't have to get on that flight and go abroad and pay a lot of money to be outdoors and to experience travel right now. I think that sounds amazing in Pennsylvania. I do want to ask for those travelers that are just they have their minds set on going on a plane and traveling. What should they keep in mind this summer? It's always smart to pick a hidden gem or consider an all inclusive in a destination that might be offseason like florida. Now, despite the weather warming up, places like florida don't really get into the thick of rainy season until late july and august. I've talked about it before, but places like Key Largo are just over an hour away from Miami Airport, making it an easy three day trips. You don't have to go away for too long. The bungalows, Key Largo is one of my favorite spots. It's a great all inclusive for adults only that boasts everything from floating tiki bars to sunset. Catamaran cruise is fine dining, two pools, a scar and more. Now you can also consider a shorter stay at a boutique hotel within driving distance of your location and in my case, the summer hotspot of Rhode island is just over two hours away where you can find boutique hotels like the shore house in Narragansett. It, it's a great place that mixes nautical tradition with victorian charm in convenient proximity to new ports and all the area has to offer from world class beaches to incredible seafood. So you don't have to go that far if you don't want to To find a vacation destination. And I've spent a lot of summers in Rhode Island. You're absolutely right. It is a hidden gem. You mentioned the pilot shortage a little while ago, a moment ago, there is a lawmaker who would like to change the age for retirement for airline pilots from 65 to 67 Francesca. Do you think that's realistic? I don't know that. It's realistic. I mean look right now they're saying that they could use a lot of pilots out there and I think that by by narrowing the age gap, we may find that it doesn't help the shortage at all. Um, so I think we need to probably broaden that and I don't think that the early retirement is going to stick Just because we're seeing such a big shortage right now Francisco, I have about 30 seconds. I want to ask, do you think these record high gas prices affected Americans not hitting the roads and taking to the skies instead. I would like to say it did, but I think people just after being pent up for so long, I desperately want to travel and they're willing to pay the money to do it. Okay to travel expert Francesca page, have a great summer. We hope you come back soon because these tips are great. Thank you.