Working in the world of trade shows often means a lot of time spent in airports and hotels. So for all my fellow road warriors, here are some travel tidbits you’ll want to know about.
While the TSA is not anyone’s favorite government entity, they did score a few points recently with two significant decisions in passengers’ favor:
- As of June 1, all 250 backscatter X-ray machines have been removed from U.S. airports. These were controversial not only for invasion of privacy issues, but also for the level of radiation they emitted. New body scanners will rely on radio waves and are less revealing.
- This week they also dropped plans to allow small knives, golf clubs, and bats into aircraft cabins. This issue had been hotly contested by airline employees and frequent fliers.
In other travel news, the $110 million renovations at Hyatt McCormick Place in Chicago are now complete. Anyone who’s attended a show at McCormick Place (which is the hotel’s primary audience — tourists don’t typically stay at that location) in the past two years has watched the transformation, starting with a new 12-story guestroom tower, renovated rooms and lobby in the existing tower, along with improved restaurant and meeting space. Now the fourth largest hotel in Chicago, the Hyatt is providing a much-needed boost for both convention business and the surrounding neighborhood.
