Shortly after news spread that gun-toting terrorists had launched a deadly siege on Mumbai, 75 blue-and-white police cars carrying 150 officers fanned out across Manhattan, lights flashing.
The U.S. travel industry is preparing for a painful holiday season as Americans reduce their discretionary spending. But in Europe the holiday season is holding up well, travel agents say, with people reluctant to forego their year-end break with family and friends.
Airlines reported sharp declines in passenger traffic for September. Hotel occupancy rates are down, and corporate travel managers are demanding new concessions on previously negotiated deals. Cancellations are starting to rise even at four- and five-star hotels, which previously seemed immune to the economy's travails.
Researching a business trip once involved guidebooks and the advice of a handful of friends. But if corporate travel companies have their way, executives will soon be consulting social networking sites and an endless stream of strangers for the secrets of the road.
The concept of a furnished apartment with cleaning services is nothing new. Picture a college dormitory room with mismatched chairs and second-hand table lamps - most people's first taste of living on their own.
The moment Barbara Girard read that The Plaza hotel was converting a large number of its rooms into luxury condominium apartments she was determined to move in, undeterred by asking prices ranging from $6 million to $36 million.
