“Virgin America Ranked Number One Airline in Annual Zagat Airline Survey - PR Newswire (press release)” plus 1 more

Virgin America Ranked Number One Airline in Annual Zagat Airline Survey - PR Newswire (press release)

Posted: 24 Nov 2009 02:22 PM PST

Airline Wins Best Overall Midsize carrier for Both Premium (First) and Economy Class (Main Cabin) Service

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Virgin America, the California-based airline that is reinventing domestic travel, today thanked the more than 5,000 frequent fliers participating in the 2009 Zagat Global Airline Survey who ranked the carrier best domestic midsize airline in both the premium class and economy class categories. Virgin America was not only rated best overall airline in its category, but earned a survey-leading score of 24 points for First Class service and 21 points for Main Cabin service - beating all U.S. carriers across all size categories. With one of the youngest and most fuel efficient fleets in the U.S., the airline also earned top marks for its sustainable practices. In addition, the carrier received praise for the usability of its Web site.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090123/VIRGINAMERICALOGO)

Launched in August 2007, Virgin America has won a list of reader-based awards, including top honors last month as "Best Domestic Airline" in Conde Nast Traveler's 2009 Readers' Choice Awards (a sample of +25,000 readers) and in July, "Best Domestic Airline" in Travel + Leisure World's Best Awards. The airline offers innovative amenities like touch-screen entertainment, power outlets and fleetwide Gogo® In-flight Internet.

Zagat's 2009 Airline Survey covered 16 domestic and 73 international airlines, as well as 30 domestic airports. The survey, conducted on ZAGAT.com, incorporates the opinions of 5,895 frequent fliers and travel professionals who collectively took 97,600 flights in the past year. Each airline was rated on Zagat's signature 30-point scale on its premium and economy class service. The airlines were rated on four aspects of performance: (1) Comfort, (2) Service, (3) Food and (4) Website. Other issues such as value, on-time performance, luggage and in-flight entertainment were also covered.

Virgin America received the top ranking within its size group for both its Main Cabin and First Class service. Full results for U.S. airlines are listed below, with point tallies where available. For a full list, visit: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/zagats-2009-airline-survey-shows-air-travel-decline-72530437.html

  Midsize Domestic Premium Class: 24: Virgin America 21: Hawaiian Airlines 20: Alaska Airlines  Midsize Domestic Economy Class: 21: Virgin America Midwest Airlines 16: Hawaiian Airlines  Large Domestic Premium Class: 21: Continental Airlines 17:  American Airlines Delta Air Lines 16: United Airways 15: AirTran Airways  Large Domestic Economy Class: 19: JetBlue Airways 15: Continental Airlines Southwest Airlines 12:  AirTran Airways 11: Delta Air Lines

Virgin America's Red(TM) entertainment platform offers 25 films, live TV, interactive Google Maps, music videos, videogames, and an on-demand menu that allows guests to order what they want, when they want it. In May, the airline became the first to offer in-flight internet on every flight, and in October it joined forces with Google, to make WiFi free for the holidays. Virgin America maintains an industry leading on-time ranking, with an impressive 87.2% percent A-14 on-time performance reported for the third quarter of 2009.

In addition to a Main Cabin that offers custom-designed leather seats with a deeper, more comfortable pitch, the airline's First Class offers plush white leather seats with 55 inches of pitch and lumbar massagers. The carrier's premium Main Cabin Select option, offers 38-inches of pitch, complimentary food and cocktails, an all-access pass to Red's countless entertainment options, dedicated overhead bins and priority check-in/boarding.

Virgin America flies to San Francisco, LA, New York, Washington D.C., Seattle, Las Vegas, San Diego, Boston, Orange County and Fort Lauderdale. The airline offers daily flights from: SFO to LAX, SFO to JFK, SFO to SAN, SFO to IAD, SFO to LAS, LAX to JFK, LAX to IAD, SFO to SEA, SEA to LAX, JFK to LAS, BOS to LAX, BOS to SFO, SFO to SNA, LAX to FLL and SFO to FLL.

EDITORS NOTE: Virgin America is a U.S.-controlled, owned and operated airline. It is an entirely separate company from Virgin Atlantic. Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group is a minority share investor in Virgin America.

About Virgin America: Virgin America is one of the fastest growing start-up U.S. airlines of all time. The airline's new aircraft offer interactive in-flight entertainment systems and power outlets at seat for electronic gear. Virgin America offers in-flight internet on every flight and hosts the largest in-flight entertainment library in the U.S. skies via its touch-screen Red(TM) system. The airline was named "Best Domestic Airline" in the Conde Nast Traveler 2008 and 2009 Readers' Choice Awards and in Travel + Leisure's 2008 and 2009 World's Best Awards. For more: www.virginamerica.com.

SOURCE Virgin America

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Travels in Cyberspace: The Monday Report - New York Times

Posted: 23 Nov 2009 02:57 PM PST

After her frenetic appearance at the American Music Awards last night — which featured a vocally shaky performance of the song "Louboutins," a decidedly unflattering outfit and hairdo, and an awkward, mid-song tumble to the stage floor (landing smack on her celebrated derriere) — Jennifer Lopez probably needs a vacation.

If so, then she might be headed to Las Ventanas in Los Cabos, Mexico. The current issue of Travel & Leisure highlights that luxury resort on a list of places where you're likely to find celebrities like Ms. Lopez, Leonardo DiCaprio and Adam Sandler this winter. (Though the article's headline — "Celebrities' Secret Winter Vacation Spots" — might be a little misleading. A Google search of "Las Ventanas" and "Jennifer Lopez" turned up 4,120 hits, including posts on sites ranging from USAToday.com to WorldGolf.com that all noted that JLo was a frequent guest.)

"It's not surprising," said the magazine, why celebrities like Brad Pitt (who is said to have brought both Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie there) find Las Ventanas appealing. The resort, where lower-priced rooms can begin at $1200 a night, "has the perfect formula for any traveler looking to escape a dreary winter. There's a long, crowdless, milky-white beach that stretches for miles; giant suites with private Jacuzzis on big balconies overlooking the sea; and Mini Cooper convertibles and fully loaded Kindles to borrow."

Also on its list of celebrity winter hangouts: Little Nell in Aspen (Kate Hudson and Mariah Carey) and the Setai in Miami's South Beach (Bono, Jay-Z and Beyoncé).

"The celebrities really don't stand out," Carol Hooper, the Little Nell's head concierge, tells Travel & Leisure "They hang out in the lobby; they have lunch in the restaurants. They feel very comfortable here," she says.

And so, presumably, will you. Just don't ask Ms. Lopez for singing lessons.

Cruising with Klingons

There are cruises tailored to all sorts of groups, from foodies to amateur archaeologists to scrapbookers. Even watchers of cult TV shows, it seems. That's what the writer Rolf Potts, author of the books "Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long Term Travel" and "Marco Polo Didn't Go There" recently found out on a Norwegian Dawn cruise that he is now writing about in a five-part series on the World Hum Web site.

"I've been at sea with these folks since we embarked from New York a little more than 24 hours ago," his first entry begins. "Two days from now we'll sail into port at Bermuda, but most of my travel companions are less focused on our earthly destination than on more far-flung corners of the universe— places like Vulcan, Romulus and the Klingon homeworld."

Yes, Mr. Potts is on the "Cruise Trek," an annual event for fans of the "Star Trek" TV-and-movie franchise. As Mr. Potts explains, "In addition to the standard cruise amenities (bingo, shuffleboard, all-you-can-eat restaurants), I'll be participating in 'Star Trek' trivia games, attending Q&A sessions with mid-level 'Star Trek' celebrities, sitting in on science fiction writing classes, and witnessing a 'Star Trek' theme wedding."

Sounds fun. When does the cruise ship sail for fans of "Mad Men"?

Sniffing Out Piedmont

For food-centric travelers already familiar with Tuscany and Umbria, Ondine Cohane, a frequent contributor to Condé Nast Traveler, recommends Piedmont, which she says, "remains one of Italy's most underrated destinations."

In a post on the magazine's Daily Traveler blog, Ms. Cohane certainly makes it sound appealing, especially for those looking for a last-minute getaway.

"November is the perfect time to visit," she writes. "The wine harvest has recently finished so you can get a taste of the new vintages, the foliage and vines are turning beautiful shades of yellow, red and brown, and best of all it's truffle season. Almost every good restaurant in Piedmont has a special truffle tasting menu. (Not to knock the great truffle offerings in cities like London or New York, but a fresh truffle that travels at most a few hours from dirt to dining table tastes way better than one shipped overseas.) Fresh, delicate, and just slightly pungent — hell, I understand why local prized pigs make whole careers out of foraging them."

Island of the Rising Art

File this under the category of "Who Knew?" In the Washington Post Travel section this weekend, Glenn Kessler profiled the Japanese island of Naoshima, which, though just 10 square miles in area, "has become one of the world's leading centers of modern art."

Its centerpiece is the Benesse House, which doubles as both a museum and a small hotel. As Mr. Kessler explains, "After the day-trippers have left the island, a handful of guests have free rein at Benesse House, able to wander the halls at their leisure examining pieces by Jackson Pollock, Jasper Johns, Frank Stella and other greats in a strikingly modern space designed by Tadao Ando, one of Japan's most famous architects."

Even the simple act of having a meal there sounds inviting in the telling of Mr. Kessler: "The museum is completely integrated with the sea and the sky, so a vivid Jean-Michel Basquiat canvas looms over you as you eat breakfast in the morning while gazing at the horizon."

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Travel and Leisure

Tuesday, November 24, 2009