Airline News: Weather protection for a fee

Ian Chandler responded to our recent post about a new site describing the various European low-cost airlines, and we wanted to make sure you saw his tip: The best way to find the cheapest fares in Europe is to do a bit of intense Googling and then go direct to the airline websites. Be very careful when you book to study the booking conditions and options - Ryanair, in particular, is devised with the cunning of Satan to part you from more money than you might expect. Beware of paying for "priority boarding" - on some flights, all passengers had paid for this, which made the option meaningless. Also, be aware that these airlines will charge you for every ounce of excess baggage. One other thing: within Continental Europe, it is often quicker and cheaper - and much pleasanter - to take the train than to fly.

This morning, discount airline ATA declared bankruptcy and canceled all of its flights. The airline was serving 10,000 passengers a day on many routes west of the Mississippi. Ticketholders can learn how to receive a partial refund by visiting ata.com for instructions. Budget Travel tip: The Fair Credit Billing Act gives credit card customers the right to dispute charges for services not received. People who never get the chance to use tickets can at least get reimbursed by the bank that issued their card. Notify the credit card company right away. It's within your rights to ask for a refund for any services that were never rendered, as long as you contest the charges within 60 days of the charges' appearing on a statement (and some credit card companies extend this period to 90 days). If you bought travel insurance, see if your policy covers "operator default." You may be able to get the insurance company to recoup any losses that the credit card company hasn't already taken care of.

About 44 percent of families take at least one trip a year with their grandparents, according to a new survey. Here's where that statistic comes from: People who visited the hotel-review site TripAdvisor were invited to fill out a survey. One of the questions was: How many trips in a 12 month period that you typically take that involve not only the kids but also their grandparents? Among U.S. parents with kids living in their household, 44 percent said that they take at least one trip a year with grandma and grandpa. TripAdvisor says the results are statistically representative of the U.S. Do you travel with kids and grandparents in tow? If so, feel free to suggest your travel ideas, tips, and strategies...

There—I said it. As the editor of a travel magazine I’m not supposed to hate any place, or so I’ve always assumed. If nothing else, it seems unkind to slag on a place that obviously other people enjoy. And honestly, I can usually find something fun and great and wonderful about anywhere. But as I was eating dinner tonight, I was flipping through Bon Appetit (looking good, by the way!), and I came across an ad for Wynn, the newish hotel from Steve Wynn. And every restaurant in the ad just seemed so awful. At this point, it’s old hat to complain about Vegas being fake, but I looked at the photos in the ad, and I just thought, They look like they’re from a computer game—maybe Grand Theft Auto: Country Club. I don’t want to be anywhere near these places. And I realized that if I never went to Vegas again, I’d be just fine. It’s a shame, because I grew up adoring the place; we’d drive there in our RV from Southern California, getting up very early in the morning, and we’d watch the city lights from across the desert floor. There was just nothing--nothing!--quite so amazing as pulling into town and seeing the lights of Las Vegas. The Wynn, however, looked as far from glamorous as you can get. I mean, I like tacky, but this was tacky in all the wrong ways. And it sure as hell didn’t look fun. But I didn’t want to just vent about Vegas; I actually wanted to ask those of you who really do enjoy it: Why? What is it that floats your boat about this place? What am I missing? Is it the feeling that anything can happen? (Personally, I can’t think of a place with more security cameras--you so much as pull out a camera in a casino and you’ll be face to face with the front door.)