Business Travel Tips

American Airlines is offering discount airfares on several UK - US flights, if you book by January 22.

From London Heathrow, London Gatwick and Manchester, you can get return flights in economy, including taxes, as the followings:
- New York from £249
- Boston from £259
- Los Angeles and Las Vegas from £284
- Miami, Chicago and Detroit from £299
- Denver and Dallas Fort Worth from £339

For the full list and details of the deals, consult the American Airlines website.

Beginning April 1, 2007, Air China will add Monday and Wednesday non-stop flights on San Francisco (SFO) - Beijing (PEK) route, making it a daily service.

Schedule:
-departure San Francisco at 2:20pm, arrival Beijing at 5:05pm the following afternoon;
-departure Beijing at 3:30pm, arrival in San Francisco at 12:10pm.

Air China flies nonstop to Beijing from the following North American airports: San Francisco International (SFO), Los Angeles International (LAX), New York Kennedy (JFK), and Vancouver International (YVR).

On December 27 British Airways launched a sale including flights from U.S. to England with return fares from $565.

Below’s a sampling of these discounted BA flights to London Heathrow.

-From Baltimore, Boston, and Philadelphia $288, with return fares from $565;
-from John F Kennedy $287, with roundtrip starting at $546;
-from San Francisco and Los Angeles from $624;
-from Canada, a return journey from Vancouver or Calgary costs from $761.

Tickets must be purchased by January 23, 2007.
Travel period: long-haul travel must be completed between January 5 and December 9, 2007.

British Airways also launched business class discount airfares for flights in its Club World from July 1 through September 2, 2007.
Below’s a sampling of these Business Class deals:
- New York (JFK or EWR) - London Heathrow (LHR) $1,126;
- Chicago O’Hare (ORD) - London Heathrow $1,584;
- San Francisco (SFO) - London Heathrow $1,417;

Restrictions
These discount business class airfares are one-way, but they’re predicated on a round-trip purchase. Neither taxes nor fees are included. You’ll have to stay over at least one Saturday night.

U.S. visa and customs regulations, heavily enforced after Sept. 11, are making the trips to the United States too onerous for international business travelers.
That negatively affects the U.S. business; below costs and risks.

- The number of business travelers to the United States fell 10 percent in 2005 from the previous year, according to World Travel Market, a London-based trade-show group.
- $31 billion in lost sales and higher expenses from 2002 to 2004 for U.S. businesses according to a The National Foreign Trade Council estimate.
- Foreign travelers choosing other destinations might fuel the growth of rival commercial and financial centers, U.S. business groups say.

So, as companies are pressing their case with the U.S. State Department, Tom Ridge, the first U.S. secretary of homeland security says:

“Our challenge now is to continue to meet our security needs while striking a better balance with how we welcome foreign visitors”

However, beginning Jan. 23, people from Canada, Mexico, South or Central America and the Caribbean entering the United States by airplane, will be required to present a passport. ( source )

If you book and buy by December 31, 2006, you can get a real deal on a transpacific flight.

Korean Air is offering Seattle (SEA) - Seoul (ICN) roundtrip at $904 (not including taxes and fees).

Restrictions:
- minimum stay: four days; you’ll have to travel on a weekday;
- tickets must be purchased by December 31, 2006;
- travel period: between January 1 and January 31, 2007.