{"id":229,"date":"2008-10-24T09:31:41","date_gmt":"2008-10-24T14:31:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/2008\/10\/currency-exchange-rates-improve-for-us-travelers\/"},"modified":"2016-12-17T15:42:37","modified_gmt":"2016-12-17T21:42:37","slug":"currency-exchange-rates-improve-for-us-travelers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/2008\/10\/currency-exchange-rates-improve-for-us-travelers\/","title":{"rendered":"Currency exchange rates improve for U.S. travelers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"business<\/a>
\nBy Joe Brancatelli
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

The
\nPanic of 2008 — at least we hope it’s just a panic and not the early
\ndays of a depression — does have something of a silver lining for business travel<\/a><\/strong>. For starters, the price of oil continues to plummet
\nand was selling as low as $61 a barrel on October 24. That rolls prices
\nback to about where they were last October and is sure to take some
\nfinancial pressure off the shaky airlines<\/a><\/strong>. Other developments will have
\na more direct benefit for international business travelers. The dollar
\nis on a rampage against other currencies, which are being pummeled by
\nevents. The Australian dollar<\/strong>, trading around 90 cents tothe greenback
\njust a month or so ago, has fallen off the metaphoric table. Today it
\ntraded around 65 cents, its lowest level in five years. The euro<\/strong>, which
\npeaked at $1.60 earlier this year, continues to fall, too. It’s now
\nselling around $1.30. The dollar has also reached a recent high against
\nthe British pound<\/strong>; it’s now selling at about $1.60, down from about
\n$2.03 earlier this year.<\/p>\n

NEED TO KNOW<\/strong><\/p>\n

On-the-road intelligence to help you travel smarter<\/strong>: American Airlines<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/strong> <\/strong>and its American Eagle<\/strong>
\ncommuter subsidiary are rolling out a new product at some of their
\nmajor airports<\/a><\/strong>: PriorityAAccess. Available to elite members of American
\nAAdvantage and full-fare and premium-class fliers, PriorityAAccess
\nincludes: dedicated check-in areas at <\/strong>airline ticket<\/a><\/strong> counters; special
\nsecurity-screening lanes; and fast-track boarding privileges. … Continental Airlines<\/a><\/strong>
\nhas reinstated a 500-mile minimum for elite OnePass members. … Sun
\nCountry Airlines, which operates a small schedule from Minneapolis, has
\ndeclared Chapter 11. It continues to operate, however. … Olympic Airlines<\/strong>
\nhas labor problems — again. A strike has grounded many of the Greek
\nflag carrier’s flights<\/a><\/strong> this month during a nationwide transport strike.
\n… The new edition of the Michelin Guide<\/strong> for <\/strong>New York<\/a><\/strong> awarded its top
\nrating (three toques) to four restaurants: Jean Georges, Le Bernardin,
\nMasa and Per Se. Seven other dining rooms received two toques.<\/p>\n

Related Orbitz resources:<\/strong><\/p>\n