Delta Adds Recharging Stations to More Airports

Can't decide where to go for your next vacation? With lots of new routes launching, the decision might be easier than you thought. Here is a sampling of what's coming up. Airline: Alaska Airlines Destinations: Washington, D.C, San Antonio, Atlanta, Orlando The airline launched service between Seattle and Washington's Reagan in late August, plus will be adding a Seattle to San Antonio route on September 17—the same day they double the amount of flights between Seattle and Atlanta (from one to two per day). There will also be a new service between San Diego and Orlando starting October 11, with five flights per week. Airline: Allegiant Destination: Hawaii The budget carrier launched flights to Hawaii in June 2012 and are adding five new routes this fall. Starting in November you will be able to fly nonstop to Honolulu from Bellingham, Washington; Eugene, Oregon; Santa Maria, California; and Stockton, California. The airline will also offer a nonstop between Bellingham and Maui starting in November. Airline: Delta Destination: Caribbean December will be a good time to fly to the Caribbean from New York. Starting that month, there will be daily nonstop flights between LaGuardia and Nassau, Bahamas as well as JFK and Aruba and Montego Bay, Jamaica. Daily service will start between JFK and Punta Cana in February 2013, while daily flights between LaGuardia and Bermuda in April 2013. Airline: Frontier Airlines Destination: Orlando Taking the kids to Disney will be a little easier starting in November, when Frontier launches nonstop flights to Orlando from Columbia, Missouri; Greensboro, North Carolina; Trenton, New Jersey; and Shenandoah Valley, Virginia. Airline: JetBlue Destination: Charleston Northeasterns looking for some southern comfort can start flying nonstop on JetBlue starting in February 2013. There will be two daily flights from New York's JFK and one from Boston's Logan Airport. Airline: Spirit Destination: Los Cabos The budget airline will launch a nonstop between San Diego and Los Cabos starting in November (with a connection from Dallas/Fort Worth), four times per week. Airline: United Destinations: Bahamas, Paris United is still figuring out routes post merger with Continental and has been on a spree of launching new routes, from Newark to Istanbul to D.C. and Dublin. Expected in the next few months are a weekly nonstop between Chicago and Nassau, Bahamas starting in February (through July 2013) and a daily nonstop between San Francisco and Paris starting in April 2013. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 11 Surprisingly Lovable Airlines 10 Scenic Airport Landings 4 Common Airport Security Questions—Answered!

Taking inspiration from fellow Irish airline Ryanair, the much-larger Aer Lingus rolled out a new carry-on restriction policy that limited passengers to one bag onboard (plus a small purse or or a "gents satchel"). But what passengers learned was that no additional bags would be allowed, even shopping bags. So no bottles of whiskey from duty free, no last-minute souvenirs you bought while waiting for your flight to board. And that's when people got angry—including the Irish government. In an article in The Irish Sun, Senator Catherine Noone urged the airline to rethink the policy, calling it “a backwards step" and unfriendly to tourists. This isn't the first time government has intervened when it comes to luggage policies. The European Parliament is attempting to pass legislation to force Ryanair to drop the one-bag policy (the European Commission will vote on it later this year), and the Spanish government already ruled that passengers can not be restricted to one bag. Also irritated with the policy: duty free vendors. The European Travel Retail Confederation reported that sales fell 70% in some areas where carry-on bags were restricted, according to an article in the Moody Report (which covers the travel retail and duty free business). They also found that travelers spent almost 30% more at the airport where there is no one-bag policy. The rules for Aer Lingus now state that you can bring on that addition small bag OR duty-free shopping bag. Progress? Of course, the airline itself says the move came for traveler convenience. Meaning that they were probably sick of people complaining about fellow passengers who bring multiple large bags onboard and hog all the storage space. Which passengers do partly because of high fees for checked bags (for international flights from the U.S. on Aer Lingus, the first bag is free but the second is $60 to check). So the circle continues. Are you as sick of confusing luggage policies as we are? If you had the power to pass a law to change an airline policy, what would it be? MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 7 Common Expenses That Take Travelers By Surprise 11 Surprisingly Lovable Airlines 6 Graceful Strategies for Dealing with an Annoying Seatmate

Looks like Carnival's anti-chair-hogging policy has gone fleet-wide. We told you about the program last month, which was limited to the new Carnival Breeze. It was so successful (and scored so much goodwill with passengers) that the line expanded it to all of their ships. And other cruise lines are jumping on the bandwagon. According to Travel Weekly, Norwegian Cruise Line is testing the waters with on the Norwegian Star—with a 45-minute grace period before your belongings are removed. Unofficial policies are also in place on Holland American and Royal Caribbean, which limit saving to 30-minutes. Don't dilly-dally on some Princess sailings, though—staff is reportedly allowed to remove belongings after just 15 minutes. So three cheers for not having to get up at the crack of dawn to get a good seat by the pool. Now that that's taken care of, where else would you like to see policies like these put in place? MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 10 Common Cruise Myths—Debunked 12 Top Tips from the World's Best Cruisers Your Top 5 Money-Saving Cruise Questions—Answered

Everyone's favorite affordable furniture store, IKEA, will build a budget hotel chain across Europe. The first one will be in Germany, in 2014. Surprisingly, the 100 hotels in Germany, Austria, Britain, Holland, and Poland won't feature the company's famous flat-pack furniture—or even its brand name, according to a scoop in the Financial Times. Though fans hope that Swedish meatballs will still be served in any hotel restaurants. IKEA aims to cash in on the booming trend in "budget designer hotels," as represented in Europe by Motel One, citizenM, Chic and Basic, Leonardo Hotels, and B&B; Hotels. It's great news that budget hotels are finally getting their day in the sun. The much stronger dollar against the euro also means that Europe is becoming a good value again. Let's just hope guests at the IKEA's hotel chain won't have to assemble the beds and dressers ourselves. Or that the instructions for finding your room won't be as confusing as Ikea's diagrams for building furniture. In 2007, Ikea Norway created a pop-up Ikea Hostel. Earlier this year, Ikea created a pop-up lounge in Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport (Terminal 3). But on a more serious note, if IKEA did go ahead and build a hotel that was just like its stores, would you stay in it if the price were right? SEE MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 26 Gorgeous Hotels You Won't Believe Are Under $150 Photos: World's Best New Affordable Hotels 39 Affordable Hotel Chains Only Locals Know