Hotel News

Fairmont Dallas joins wave of downtown Dallas hotels reopening

Poolside service will resume Thursdays-Saturdays.

Photo courtesy of Fairmont Dallas

One of downtown Dallas' most iconic hotels is set to return, following the onset of the coronavirus pandemic: The Fairmont Dallas will reopen on July 31, after being closed for three months.

The hotel will reopen with new cleaning protocols, as well as some food & beverage options.

The Starbucks located on the hotel's lobby level will reopen and will be open every day.

The Pyramid Bar will reopen with limited hours: Thursday-Sunday from 4 pm-12 am. Poolside service will also resume Thursday–Sunday.

The Pyramid Restaurant will not be open when the hotel reopens on July 31, but a spokesperson says they'll have more information regarding the restaurant's schedule in August.

The hotel had been closed since March 31.

General manager Sven-Erik Richter says in a release that their top priority is the safety, care, and well-being of the Fairmont Dallas family.

"Welcoming, safeguarding, and taking care of others is at the very heart of what we do and who we are,” Richter says. "Today, this means keeping our guests and employees safe by preventing the spread of COVID-19 – partnering with top experts to implement new standards of safety and enhanced operational protocols and procedures which are among the most stringent in the hospitality industry."

The new operational standards being implemented at Fairmont Dallas and at Fairmont properties across North & Central America were developed and vetted by a team of expert advisors to ensure maximum efficacy in preventing the spread of all viruses and pathogens, including COVID-19.

New measures include

physical distancing
mandatory screening for all guests and employees, which may include temperature check
masks provided to guests and worn by all employees
48-hour "settling period" for occupied rooms post-departure

Other actions include cleaning and disinfecting, employee training, a dedicated on-property rollout committee, and an audit program, validated under the global ALLSAFE Cleanliness label.

The Fairmont is among the last downtown hotel properties to open, joining other recent openings that include:

Joule Dallas, which reopened May 22.
Cambria Hotel Downtown Dallas, which reopened in mid-June.
Adolphus Hotel, which reopened Memorial Day weekend after being closed for 60 days.

Some downtown hotels never closed, including the Omni Dallas Hotel, AC Hotel Dallas Downtown, and W Hotel in Victory Park.

hotels

Holiday News

American Airlines expects record-setting travel on Thanksgiving 2024

Photo courtesy of American Airlines

American Airlines ready for takeoff.

The holidays are looming and American Airlines is ramping up. Over the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend, the Fort Worth-based airline expects to process nearly 8.3 million customers across more than 77,000 flights.

According to a statement from American's COO David Seymour, the airline is having a good fall season and canceled fewer flights than its peers during October.

“Thanks to the hard work of our 130,000 team members, we canceled fewer flights than any of our major competitors this October and beat our own records for on-time departures and arrivals,” Seymour says.

That's surely good news. One hates to rain on their parade, but in June 2024, the only flight I booked this year, my flight was canceled less than 24 hours before take-off. I had made hotel reservations, scheduled a pet sitter, planned events, and arranged for a friend to pick me up at the destination airport. One employee speculated that it may have been "insufficient crew." Their only solution offered was: Feel free to reschedule your flight.

Thanksgiving facts and figures
The travel window runs from November 21 to December 3, and the airline expects to carry more than 500,000 more customers than it did last year.

The most-traveled day will be Sunday, December 1. The second most-traveled day will be Monday, December 2.

The peak of peak: 1,035 mainline and regional aircraft will be enroute at 10:45 am on Sunday, December 1 — the highest number of flights handled at any given time during American’s travel period.

The airline expects to serve more than 6.8 million Biscoff cookies on board from November 21 to December 3.

Travel tips
Download the American Airlines app and check in for your flight, noting added any bags to your trip. This will save you time at the airport.

If traveling internationally, download the Mobile Passport Control app, which can speed up your entry into the U.S. Global Entry members can download the Global Entry app, which allows you to submit your entry and go straight to the officer.

Upon arrival at the airport lobby, scan your mobile boarding pass to print bag tags quickly at a kiosk. If you’re not checking bags, go straight to TSA security with your mobile boarding pass.

holidays