Sea-Tac Shuffle

If you've flown through Sea-Tac Airport recently, you might wonder what's up with all the construction. I was surprised to end up at the far south end of the terminal the other night when exiting the S gate area for baggage claim and ground transportation. 

What's going on? The construction is all in preparation for a big move for most of the airlines next year as the airport gets ready to turn over the entire north satellite "N" gate area to Alaska Airlines.

United Airlines' customers will notice the biggest change. Plans are to move United's ticket counter from the far north end of the airport to the far south end near the international area.

Read the details here in my Travel Wise column for The Seattle Times.  

Global Entry, Nexus = PreCheck

Join Global Entry or Nexus, the joint U.S.-Canandian border crossing programs and you'll   automatically be approved for PreCheck, the Transportation Security Administration's fast-pass airport security program. It's not surprising why some private companies are creating a business out of helping people apply - for a fee, of course. 




Don and Melda Follett of Yakima take frequent road trips to Canada. So when they learned that by joining Nexus, the joint U.S./Canadian fast-pass border-crossing program, they could also qualify for PreCheck, the new expedited U.S. airport security screening for low-risk travelers, they decided to apply.

They went online, typed "Nexus" in a Google search box, then hit a link, thinking they were going directly to the Global Online Enrollment System (GOES), a website set up by U.S. Customs and Canadian authorities to streamline registration in either Nexus or Global Entry, a similar program for entry into the U.S. from other countries.

Only after they paid $353.25 on their MasterCard for two Nexus applications — that should have cost only $100 ($50 each) — did they realize they had mistakenly linked to an ad at the top of the online search page. That link took them to Immigroup Immigration, a Toronto-based private company that charges fees for its services.

Rather than pay a hefty cancellation charge and start over, the Folletts went ahead with their application through Immigroup. Lesson learned: "People need to know they should go through the U.S. website (https://goes-app.cbp.dhs.gov/main/goes) and not get sidelined to another one," says Melda Follett.

That's certainly the advice of Mike Milne of U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Seattle. Although the websites for commercial visa and immigration services (such as Immigroup) may look official, they're not (nor are they illegal).

"It's like paying someone to fill out your tax return," says Milne. "For the most part, you are able to do these things by yourself. But it takes time. We try to make it as easy as we can, but we're probably not all the way there yet."

With PreCheck eligibility now an added benefit (those who qualify can use special lanes at U.S. airports where they no longer have to take off jackets or shoes or remove laptops and liquids from carry-ons), American and Canadian officials say they're trying to streamline enrollment for Global Entry, Nexus and also Sentri, a program for expedited land-border crossings between Mexico and the U.S.

Those living in the Pacific Northwest will find Global Entry or Nexus the most useful. Here's what you need to know:

Global Entry: Allows expedited entry into the U.S. from another country, including Canada. Air travelers avoid lines at customs and immigration by running their passports through special kiosks and verifying their fingerprints. Or travelers show their Global Entry cards when entering the U.S. from Canadian land and sea borders. Global Entry cannot be used for entry into Canada or another country.

Cost: $100, good for five years.

How to apply: Go to https://goes-app.cbp.dhs.gov/main/goes, fill out the online form, then wait for notification of an in-person interview (at Sea-Tac Airport, Boeing Field and other locations). You'll have your picture taken and fingerprints scanned and be notified of approval shortly after.

Nexus: A joint U.S./Canadian program for expedited airport entry into the U.S. and Canada from other countries and for land and sea border crossing into the U.S. and Canada.

Cost: $50, good for five years.

How to apply: Same as above. Interviews take place at Boeing Field, the Peace Arch border crossing at Blaine, the Vancouver, B.C., airport or in downtown Vancouver. Nexus members can use PreCheck lanes for certain U.S. airports. In Canada, they can use "trusted traveler" security lanes at Canadian airports, but must first submit to an iris scan.

Which way to go?

Nexus is the better value at $50 because, for now at least, it includes all the benefits that come with Global Entry. 

Creatures and Cocktails

Dressed for the evening in leopard-print tights and red heels, Maya Bush starts out her 25th birthday celebration with a beer and a stroll through a simulated Costa Rican rain forest.

"This is the pre-party," she laughs, struggling to talk over electro-funk tunes provided by a DJ group called the Slayers Club.

At the Swamp Bar set up near an albino alligator named Claude, bartenders dispense $9 red-eye martinis to a well-dressed, after-work crowd snacking on steamed pork buns and blueberry tarts.

Not just another night at the museum. This is NightLife, a weekly, adults-only Thursday night creatures and cocktails party at the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco.

Part aquarium, planetarium and natural history museum, the academy transforms itself into a hip nightclub, complete with sound and light shows, dancing and changing themes that range from disposable filmmaking to — coming up Aug. 30 — bacon, featuring scientific illustrations of pigs, games, food and a vegan pig roast. Read more here on my post for NBC News.

From AAA to GasBuddy, free apps to help plan your travels.

Did you know Payless ShoeSource offers a discount to AAA members? Neither did I until I downloaded AAA Mobile, the auto club's free app for finding hotels, restaurants and businesses offering AAA discounts; calling for roadside assistance; and TripTik planning.
Chances are if you're traveling this summer or fall, you're packing a smartphone loaded with apps, some useful, some not. 

See this week's Travel Wise column in The Seattle Times for a few that will come in handy for travel planning around the Northwest and beyond.

Alaska/Horizon apologize on Facebook

Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air have apologized in a Facebook posting to an Oregon customer after the man's trip was interrupted and another traveler recounted the incident on Facebook. 

According to a USA Today report, Alaska apologized for an incident in which a passenger with late-stage Parkinson's disease missed his flight because the crew, smelling alcohol and thinking he might be intoxicated, didn't offer more assistance.
Tons of comments on Alaska's Facebook page. 

Here's the full press release:

SEATTLE ˜ Horizon Air President Glenn Johnson apologized to a customer on Facebook today after the man's trip to visit his daughter was interrupted and a fellow traveler recounted the experience on the social media site. After the man missed his flight on Friday, he flew to see his daughter on Saturday.
"First and foremost, we've determined that we could and should have handled this better and I apologize to our passenger on behalf of all of us at Horizon Air and Alaska Airlines," Johnson wrote in his Facebook post. "This experience has reminded us of the importance of assisting passengers with disabilities and making sure every one of them receives the special care they may need. The information we've gathered during our review will certainly improve our efforts going forward."

As part of its review of the incident, Alaska Airlines refunded the passenger's initial ticket, provided a complimentary roundtrip flight for his trip and offered a second roundtrip ticket for him to visit his daughter again at a later date. Horizon Air operates regional flights on behalf of Alaska Airlines.

"We've worked with a variety of disability organizations for years, which has helped us improve our service for travelers with disabilities," said Ray Prentice, Alaska Airlines' director of customer advocacy. "This incident provides another learning opportunity for our employees as well as for travelers with disabilities."
 Alaska and Horizon have partnered with Open Doors Organization, an independent disability advocacy group, to review employees' handling of the situation and suggest improvements in the airlines' disability, awareness and sensitivity training. "

Tips from a traveling locavore

I’ve sipped Ayran, a frothy yogurt drink made with water and salt, in the tent of a Kurdish nomad; sampled Mexican grasshoppers seasoned with chili powder and lime; and eaten kimchee stored in a pot buried underground in the backyard of a Korean homestay host.
 Only once in many years of traveling have I become sick enough to take the travel meds I always carry with me.
 That was in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where I ate the night before at a Western-style private club that served pasta and chicken.
   Some of my most memorable travel experiences have to do getting to know people over food and drink. 
 I first tasted fermented barley wine while strolling with a Korean friend through a food festival in a village outside of Seoul. I was the only Western woman in the crowd, so every vendor wanted me to sample his brew.
 Whenever I bite into a corn tortilla, I think of Francisca de la Luz (Francisca of the light) whom I met in the village of San Francisco Uricho, near Patzcuaro, Mexico. Working in an outdoor kitchen, her black hair tied back and braided, she used a granite rolling pin to shape her dough into perfect disks, then grilled her tortillas – 300 per day – in a flat griddle over an open fire.
  My philosophy: Set some ground rules for yourself based on information from a travel medicine specialist. Stick to them, no exceptions. Then dive in and eat like a local.
   Read my tips for staying healthy in this week's Travel Wise column in The Seattle Times.

Victoria's floating restaurants

  I like to think of Victoria B.C. as a slice of Britain in our own backyard. Everyone knows about the Empress Hotel in the Inner Harbour, but did you know about the floating restaurants? 


   Walk the path that runs along the waterfront, or take one of the little ferries to Fisherman's Wharf to find Puerto Vallarta Amigos, a food truck, which opened its first floating location there earlier this year. Tourism Victoria reports that the taco joint serves up quesadillas, tortas and Baja-style fish tacos for $7-$12. Open from 11 a.m. until dusk. There's also the floating Fish Store, with a gluten-free menu, soups and meals for $3.75-$15.  


   On the north side of Ship's Point Wharf, Salt Spring Tours offers visitors a dockside "smoke and float'' take-away lunch service from their boat, Pride of Victoria. Meals priced from $6 to $10.