BUSINESS BRIEFS
Honolulu, Maui, Kauai in top 10 tour destinations
Advertiser Staff and News Services
Hawai'i is well represented in a travel trends survey on top domestic destinations for 2008, capturing three of the top 10 spots.
Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates surveyed 507 of its travel agents to come up with the ranking, which also listed top international travel spots and cruise destinations.
Honolulu ranked the third top domestic destination, trailing Las Vegas and Orlando. It was followed in the fourth spot by Maui. Kaua'i moved back into the top 10 ranking this year as it came in at No. 9.
Hawai'i didn't rank among the top five cruise destinations, which included Alaska, Caribbean islands and the Mediterranean Sea.
BIG ISLAND B&B THE 'WHEEL' DEAL
A Hawai'i bed and breakfast inn, Bamboo Orchid Cottage in Volcano on the Big Island, will be among those featured during "Bed and Breakfast Week" beginning today on the TV game show "Wheel of Fortune."
The directory and reservation network www.BedandBreakfast.com worked with the producers of "Wheel of Fortune" to put together nightly prizes of stays in B&B inns around the world.
Among the prizes, which will be offered Wednesday, is airfare, ground transportation, and a seven-day, six-night stay for two at Bamboo Orchid, according to Bamboo Orchid Cottage owner Suzy Kruppa of O'ahu.
BOEING DELIVERIES HIGHEST SINCE '01
Boeing Co., the world's second-largest maker of commercial planes, delivered 441 airliners last year, the most since 2001.
Shipments rose 8.7 percent to 112 planes in the fourth quarter, Chicago-based Boeing said. The 2007 results may still not be enough to beat rival Airbus SAS, which expects delivery of more than 450 planes.
Chief Executive Officer James McNerney sped assembly lines last year to meet a delivery forecast of 440 to 445 planes, in an effort to regain the top spot from Airbus this year and profit from a record order backlog of more than $200 billion.
Boeing delivered 527 commercial jets in 2001.
HONEY, WHERE'S MY GLASS EYE?
People rushing to check out of a hotel to catch a flight or make an appointment often leave behind valuable items, but a glass eye and a child?
Those are just two of the unusual items left behind by customers who stayed at a Travelodge budget hotel last year, the U.K.-based company announced. The chain's Top 10 "most bizarre items" that were left behind were:
1. A Lord Mayor chain.
2. An urn of ashes.
3. A blue glass eye.
4. A pet Persian cat called "Princess."
5. A child.
6. A suitcase full of diamond jewelry.
7. A Buddha lucky charm necklace.
8. Keys to a Bentley.
9. A 6-foot remote-controlled helicopter.
10. A family heirloom gold necklace.
The most common items left behind included cell phones and chargers, clothing, books, toiletries, computers and other electrical gadgets, and false teeth and limbs.
"Each year our lost and found departments provide plenty of revelations," said Guy Parsons, Travelodge chief operating officer. "Whether they are making a quick stopover in one of our city hotels or a long weekend in the country, the property left behind can tell a million tales."
HOTEL PER-ROOM REVENUE FALLS 4%
U.S. hotels' revenue per available room fell 4.4 percent in the week ended Dec. 29 from the same period a year earlier, according to Smith Travel Research. The revenue figure, known as RevPAR, is based on average occupancy and room rates.
RevPar was $43.66 and compared with $45.67 in the week ended Dec. 30, 2006.
