Travel Web sites struggle to keep up with the news

© St. Petersburg Times,
published October 14, 2001

Electronic explorer

While wary Americans weigh a rash of steep discounts and a presidential plea not to "surrender our freedom to travel" to terrorist threats, travel Web sites are scrambling to reflect a dramatically altered -- and constantly shifting -- landscape.

The Sept. 11 airliner attacks on New York and Washington "have had perhaps the most severe effects ever on the travel industry," says travel guru Arthur Frommer in a new Web-based forum on whether Americans should alter or cancel their vacation plans (www.frommers.com).

And those effects permeate the industry's increasingly important online component.

The number of visitors to such high-profile sites as Expedia, Orbitz, Priceline and Travelocity had climbed to pre-Sept. 11 levels before the U.S. retaliatory strikes. The sites had received generally good marks for customer service efforts in the chaotic days immediately after the terrorist attacks.

But those booking sites -- like the airlines whose tickets they peddle -- have clearly been hammered. Travelocity, Hotwire and Orbitz, among others, have announced staff cuts in recent weeks.

Here's a look at how several travel sites are adapting to troubled times:

If there was a "worst timing" award, it would go to Amazon.com's Travel Store (www.amazon.com), which launched about two weeks after the September attacks. The new branch of the retail giant offers travel information and booking through Expedia, discounted airline tickets, hotel rooms and rental cars through Hotwire, and cruises through National Leisure Group.

Not surprisingly, the Travel Store's home page includes a prominent plug for Expedia's updates on air travel status and security measures. But shoppers can also browse for travel-related books, audiobooks and e-books (digital books that can be read on a computer screen or other electronic device), plus an array of travel gear, foreign language software and other accessories.

Smarter Living (www.smarterliving.com) has consistently ranked as one of the Web's best consumer travel resources, and its post-Sept. 11 coverage is no exception. The recently revamped and expanded site combines last-minute air fares and other travel deals with topical, authoritative columns directed to seniors, families, students and frequent fliers.

Last week, for example, the site featured a story by longtime consumer advocate Ed Perkins on travelers' options when coping with a force majeur event (a term for serious trouble not within human control -- in this case, beyond the control of an airline or other travel company).

Like other booking sites, airlines-owned Orbitz (www.orbitz.com) saw sales plummet in the aftermath of the terrorist assaults. Like its competitors, Orbitz supplies constantly updated travel information through its Travel Watch section. But as more airlines try to stimulate bookings with sale fares that include special Web-only discounts, Orbitz holds an edge as the only online agency that displays and sells such fares.

It stands to reason that Arthur Frommer would answer the question "Should Americans be traveling now?" with a resounding yes, and he did just that via a passionate missive in a recent issue of his Web site's daily newsletter.

But as several reader postings make clear, his opinion is not shared by even avid travelers. Noted one: "Everyone seems to be on such a mission that we have to keep traveling to prove some kind of point. I think that's crazy. Europe was there for thousands of years, and it will still be there in years to come."

-- Electronic Explorer appears monthly. Comments are welcome by e-mail to lsbly@aol.com.

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