Another European carrier calls it quits, an online travel agency offers inflight entertainment options up front, and a legacy line finishes an upgrade.

Malev No More

Yet another European airline ran out of money and had to stop operating—this time, Malev, the national Hungarian line. Several other lines—especially fully or partially state-owned operations—face similar cash crunches, and we haven't seen the last of these failures. ... read more»

If it was a good deal (or a notably bad one) from an airline, hotel, or car rental loyalty program, you can read all about it here, and plan your travel accordingly. ... read more»

In what the company claims will result in "the richest elite program in the industry," Starwood has announced a slew of new benefits for elite members of its Preferred Guest program.

The new benefits, which take effect on March 1, vary by elite tier. ... read more»

Representative Tom Graves (R-GA) introduced a bill this week to undo the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) latest consumer protection rule. As we’ve reported, that rule requires airlines to post "all up" fares, including all fees and taxes, in public advertising and on their websites. For obvious reasons, most consumer advocates support this new rule, which makes side-by-side airfare comparisons much easier.

The bill proposes to undo that protection. As is so often the case these days, even the bill’s name is deceptive: "Travel Transparency Act." I don’t see how anything could be more "transparent" than telling consumers exactly what they have to pay, in total. ... read more»

Welcome to What We're Reading, our new weekly look at the most insightful, useful, and entertaining travel-related stories from across the information superhighway.

No time to browse hundreds of travel sites and blogs to get to the good stuff? Consider us your personal fascinating-story search engine. This week, we unearthed the answer to the germy remote-control conundrum, a roundup of dreamy hotels close to home, Budget Travel's Pick for the coolest small town(s) in the States, and more. ... read more»

Just five minutes by car from the center of Rotorua city lies the Whakarewarewa Forest, world-renowned for its free hiking and mountain biking trails. There's walking paths for every fitness level, a self-guided nature trail, and panoramic views of Rotorua City and Lake.

Bikers will be in heaven here, as the forest is home to one of New Zealand's oldest mountain biking trail networks. There's over 90 kilometers of carefully maintained trails that offer fantastic lake and mountain views. (Mt. Tarawera is a nearby volcano.)

Horse-riding trails are also available, but you'll have to BYOH (bring your own horse) or arrange for a horse riding tour. ... read more»

Amtrak discount promotions for February include some pretty good deals:

• 50 percent off for a companion ticket on the Palmetto service between Fayetteville, SC, and Savannah, and on the Crescent between Atlanta and New Orleans. Both promotions are for daytime trips and include trips between intermediate Amtrak stations. Buy by February 29 for travel June 1 through 30.
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With all the talk that Washington is "broken," it's good to report that House and Senate negotiators agreed on a bipartisan program to extend Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) funding for four years. By far the most important provision is continuing to fund development and deployment of the NextGen air traffic control system.

The basic purpose of NextGen is to switch airspace control from ground-based radar systems to a system based on satellite navigation. This, in turn, will help ease airspace congestion, decrease flight times, decrease fuel burn, decrease airline costs, and provide improved bad-weather landing and takeoff capability at airports around the country. NextGen is not pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking; it uses fully developed off-the-shelf technology. Regional tests with even partial capability have already validated the claimed benefits. ... read more»

The world's tallest bridge can be found 343 meters above the Tarn Valley in France. The Millau Viaduct is an engineering marvel that rivals the Eiffel Tower (in fact, the bridge is actually taller than the tower).

You can experience the 2,460-meter-long bridge in a number of different ways—take it in from the official viewing area and tourist information center, float under it in a canoe, ride across it in an open-top bus, or even view it from the air while you hang glide over it!

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Tickets to the 2012 games are tough to get. Why not take in Shin Kicking, Gravy Wrestling, or (our personal favorite) the World Stinging Nettle Eating Championships instead? ... read more»