The Luggage Blog

Today is Blog Action Day when thousands of blogs post recommendations of ideas and steps individuals or companies can take to help make a stand and lend a helping hand to those in need.  Blog Action Day will help raise awareness, start a global discussion and add momentum to an important cause.  As we all know poverty exists all over the world and every little step than you can take is a step towards change!

Here at The Luggage Blog we recommend a couple of great things that one can do to help out.  We suggest that you donate your unused frequent flier miles or even your lightly used luggage and travel accessories to a charity of your choice.

Many travelers rack up tons of frequent flier miles over time and never even use them! So basically, they are just going to waste!… Well if you didn’t know this already, you can actually donate your unused frequent flier miles to charity, which will definitely help out those in need!  Here’s a list of some airlines that participate in donating unused frequent flier miles:

• American Airlines
• Continental Airlines
• Delta Airlines
• Northwest Airlines
• United Airlines
• US Airways

Not only could you donate your unused frequent flier miles, you could also donate your lightly used luggage to a charity of your choice.  I’m sure that there are many charities around the world that would be glad to accept these types of donations.  However, you always want to check with each charity to determine their acceptance guidelines.

Robinson Luggage, a leading luggage retailer in the Philadelphia area, recently held an in-store event doing just that.  For two weeks customers were able to bring in their old luggage and get 25% off a new bag.  The event ended on September 30th and Robinson Luggage gathered around 80 bags that will be donated to Career Wardrobe of Philadelphia, a non-profit organization that helps assist women in transition back into the workforce.

I’m sure there are many other ways and ideas to give back to your community but we wanted to share these two that we thought were a great way to help out others’ in need!

Photo by Mr. Kris

Message In a Carry-On - TSA Communication Plates [Evolution of Security]

Image by Evan Roth

Images by fotopusch and dragonroy

Destinations

• America’s Most Stressful Cities
• World’s Most Beautiful Coastlines (pics)
• 10 Incredible Underground Lakes and Rivers (pics)
• Endangered Natural Wonders Worth Seeing

Airlines

• Top 10 ways to Avoid New Airline Fees
• Us Airways Saving More Money Because Nobody is Buying Their Drinks?
• United Airlines is Apparently Crappy at Buying Fuel

Ask Metafilter

• Where to store a suitcase in Manhattan
• How do I set up a Remote Working Hub [while on Vacation]?

Photo by Sanghavedanta

OnionMap is an interactive tourist map of major cities around the world. It’s informative and easy to use and gives you a plethora of information at a glance—even the city’s big mac index!  The menu lists attractions, hotels, restaurants, airports and more for each major city on the site. Click on a location in the menu and you’ll be brought to that spot on the map with a list of information such as address, prices and access.

The site doesn’t list every major city and it’s not without flaws. The US version of the site is not as robust as the Korean version which has a more intuitive interface and social elements.  But overall, it’s a very useful tool for anyone planning a trip, especially if you’re still undecided on where to go.  It’s easy to find what major cities have the most unique architecture or the most interesting museums and figure out what city would fit your style best.

OnionMap Via [Lifehacker]

Latest Airline Fees

• American Airlines to charge $50 for frequent-flier upgrades (Starts Oct 1)
• United backs off buy-on-board meals on international flights
• Northwest Airlines adds $80 fuel surcharge (Starts Jan 10)
• Continental has added a $15 charge on the first checked bag (Starts Oct 7)

Wierd Attractions

• Germany’s upside-down house (Photos)
• Liverpool gets attacked by Giant Spider!
• The Most Alien-Looking Place on Earth (Photos)

Ask Metafilter: American Travel?

• Where Should I Go?
• What can I do to make one perfect night in Chicago?
• How to make the most of a very brief trip to Arizona
• Traveling to Cape Cod, Bay of Fundy & PEI

Photo by Sean Gallup

Hertz is making it way cheaper to drop off a rental car without filling the tank first.  Down from around $7.99 a gallon, they are now charging the market rate plus a flat $6.99 refueling fee.  Granted, the current market rate is still pretty high, but at least it’s fair(er?).

[Dallas News Airline Biz Blog]

Photo by hyku