How Much Do Travel Bloggers Make? (Survey results from TBEX)

Last week, results from a survey conducted by Travel Blog Exchange (TBEX) were released. 318 travel bloggers, including yours truly, were included in the survey, and below are some highlights which I found to be most interesting.

The full survey results can be found here.

• 70% are women
• 36% are between 25 and 34 years old and 36% are between 35 and 44 
• 12% do not hold a college degree or 88% have a college degree or higher
• 90% have income sources other than their travel blog
• 65% make less than $100 a month from their blog
• 71% contribute freelance blog posts to other websites
• 59% make less than $100 a month from these freelance blog posts
• 66% have a combined household income over $50,000

The moral of the story is that the majority of travel bloggers do not make money from blogging for themselves or others, so don't quit your day job!  

Notes on a Wall

- Not only is Spirit Airlines charging $45 for carry-on baggage. They now also feature seats that don't recline or in Spirit Airlines lingo are "pre-reclined" (TNooz.com)

- Anne Lamott hates Mother's Day and so do I (salon.com)

- Beavers in Canada built a dam that is visible from space (The Sun)

- UCLA never bestows honorary degrees, but it will this weekend to former Japanese-American students who were removed from school during WWII and placed in internment camps. (UCLA Today)  

- Before I go to a new airport, I try to look at the airport map to see where the local eateries are (say bbq in Houston), but undoubtedly, there will be a last minute gate or terminal change and I am stuck eating at Burger King. Now, there is GateGuru, which helps you locate amenities in airports around the world. (GateGuru)

Notes on the Wall

- My last blog post talked about visitors to the Poppy Reserve trampling the poppies. Apparently, there is a Facebook page to "Eradicate the Poppy Stomper" (Facebook)

- A few theories on why ginger ale is a popular beverage on flights (Upgrade Travel Better)

- Have you seen these ridiculous high resolution photos of Paris (26 gigapixels) and Dubai (45 gigapixels)?

- Make your own mobile applications at Ovi App Wizard and you can even charge for them. I would but I don't have any fresh ideas.

Air Travel Consumer Report: Worst airlines for luggage handing

(Photo: dorothykorea.com)

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In their October 2009 Air Travel Consumer Report, the U.S. Department of Transportation reports 208,000 filed baggage complaints for domestic airlines between August 2008 and August 2009. This number shows a significant decrease from last year's 270,000 complaints. These figures concern lost, damaged, or delayed baggage, charges for excess baggage, carry-on problems, and difficulties with airline claims procedures.


Best Airlines for Luggage Handling:
10. ExpressJet Airlines - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 4.37
9. United Airlines - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 4.12
8. Southwest Airlines - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 3.57
7. Northwest Airlines - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 3.13
6. JetBlue Airways - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 2.93
5. US Airways -Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 2.90
4. Continental Airlines - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 2.89
3. Frontier Airlines - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 2.24
2. Hawaiian Airlines - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 2.11
1. AirTran Airways - Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 1.74

Worst Airlines for Luggage Handling:
9. Alaska Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 4.40
8. American Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 4.45
7. Mesa Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 4.53
6. Delta Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 5.02
5. Skywest Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 5.25
4. Pinnacle Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 6.25
3. Atlantic Southeast Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 7.63
2. American Eagle Airlines: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 7.81
1. Comair: Number of complaints per 1,000 passengers: 8.20
The report also covers flight delays, oversales, consumer complaints, airline animal incident reports and customer service reports to the Department of Homeland Security.

For more info: U.S. Department of Transportation's October 2009 Air Travel Consumer Report

Virgin America – “Best Domestic Airline” according to Condé Nast Traveler

Virgin America Airlines has been voted for the second year in a row as the “Best Domestic Airline” in Condé Nast Traveler’s 2009 Readers’ Choice Awards. Over 25,000 readers voted on categories including cabin comfort, cabin service, entertainment options, and food/beverages.

Every flight features mood lighting, touch screen entertainment in every seat with satellite TV, pay-per-view movies, and video games, and food to order when you want it. Virgin America flies from Los Angeles to Boston, New York City, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington DC. Service to Fort Lauderdale begins on November 18.