August 18, 2012 – Hour 2

What’s the deal here? The American Hotel & Lodging Association reports while more motels and hotels are offering guests free breakfasts (of varying quality, one might note), the number of properties charging for Wi-fi and the use of exercise rooms is on the rise. This, despite the fact that countless surveys show the one thing that irritates most guests is having to pay for Internet connectivity. Rudy confirms the trend with Minneapolis hotelier Gerard Viardin, general manager of The Marquette Hotel, a luxury Hilton property. Viardin says he recently had to upgrade his Wi-fi system in his 300+ room hotel, and it cost the hotel $200,000. In short, free Wi-fi isn’t free for the hotel. If you like spy novels or Istanbul–or better yet, both–you’ll really love Joseph Kanon’s new novel, Istanbul Passage. Rudy invited Kanon to the show to discuss how a writer evokes a sense of place and how important that is to a novel and its author. Lose yourself in his story, and you’ll think you’ve traveled to Turkey. And Charles Leocha, co-founder of the Consumer Travel Alliance, says despite airlines’ protestations, it is possible for them to let consumers know the total cost of their flight (fees included) efficiently when selling tickets on line. Leocha is a member of a Department of Transportation (DOT) advisory board looking into airlines and their consumer practices, and he says it’s just a matter of time until the DOT compels airlines to be more forthcoming about the real price of a ticket. Plus: Rudy answers a listener’s question about obtaining a visa to visit Brazil, reveals a few travel deals, and reports some additional current travel news.