What to Know Now
Last week’s Google’s I/O event had a Christmas present for any frugal traveler: Maps, the staple smartphone functionality for any traveler, now has the ability to store and navigate with offline data.
Heavy users of the Maps app may recall that offline storage has been an on-and-off functionality of the tool — though it works well in some locales, others are completely off limits. With this new upgrade slated for later this year, it should now be possible to store all of your map data offline, saving costly downloads and your mobile phone plan to boot. In one small step, Google just made the planet a whole lot smaller.
Social Quote of the Day
You must watch this hilarious and unforgettable 1-minute motivational talk: Shia LaBeouf, raging and intense. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuHfVn_cfHU
– @pogue | David Pogue, Tech columnist, Yahoo; PBS NOVA host; Missing Manuals creator, dad of 3!
Airlines
Second-Hand Superjumbo A380s Could Fill a Role in Low-Cost Carrier Fleets: Airbus A380 superjumbos being retired from premium carriers such as Singapore Airlines Ltd. may find a second life plying six- to eight-hour routes for low-cost Asian airlines, the European planemaker predicted. Read more at Skift
The Favorite Plane of Low-Cost Carriers Gets a Private Jet Makeover: What a difference a seat in the corner office makes — even at 30,000 feet. Read more at Skift
Why Airline Change Fees Are a Slap in the Face of Flyers: To appreciate how crazy the airline fare-shopping game has become, you have to go back to the 1960s and ’70s—or get someone who remembers them to describe those halcyon days before deregulation. Read more at Skift
Airports
The Airport Vice President Biden Called ‘Third World’ to Get $3.6 Billion Makeover: The agency that operates New York’s LaGuardia Airport on Thursday selected a team to build a new main terminal. Read more at Skift
Report: NYC Area Airports Are Country’s Worst For Tarmac Delays: A new study says New York City area’s three major airports rank the worst in the country for the percentage of flights delayed on the tarmac at takeoff and landing. Read more at Skift
The US Government Will Expand Immigration Preclearance to 10 New Airports. And That’s Bad for Frequent Travelers: Yesterday the Department of Homeland Security announced plans to expand immigration pre-clearance to 10 new airports around the world. Read more at View from the Wing
Tech
Uber and Lyft Fight New York Taxi Rules While Fighting Both Logic and Each Other: Uber and Lyft are among the tech companies pushing back at proposed rules by New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission to regulate car service apps. Uber says the rules break federal law because taxi commissions don’t have the authority to regulate technology; Lyft has singled out provisions on distracted driving. Read more at Skift
Restaurant Technology Now Pushing Pay-In-Advance Meals: At noon on a recent Wednesday in May, San Francisco’s Lazy Bear restaurant began taking reservations for June. Just 45 minutes later, nearly every seat for the entire month was sold out. Read more at Skift
Google Maps Is Adding Search and Directions for Offline Use: With all the talk of cloud services and streaming media, it’s easy to forget that for many people around the world, a mobile data connection is a scarce, expensive resource. To make existing products like Maps better suited to these customers, Google is adding both search and turn-by-turn directions to the much-used app’s offline mode. Read more at Skift
Hotels
Lifestyle Hotels Look for a Local Edge to Stand out in the Market: Over the last two years, many of the legacy international hospitality companies have acquired or developed niche lifestyle hotel brands to cater to the surge of interest for a more local, design-conscious lodging experience. Read more at Skift
Homewood Suites Moves Into Latin America With New Prototype: The Homewood Suites by Hilton extended stay brand is making a push into Latin America, where this type of select service hotel model is vastly under represented, with a new prototype hotel product customized for the individual destinations from Santo Domingo to Sao Paulo. Read more at Skift
Your Turn
Jodi Ettenberg from Legal Nomads is picking out a new logo for her Thrillable Hours series. Help her choose here.
Tips and Comments
Can be sent to gm[at]skift[dot]com or to @grantkmartin
The Daily Newsletter
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