Safely sipping sauvignon

Uber rolls out service for Fredericksburg and favorite Hill Country wineries

Uber is making wine tasting in the Hill Country a little easier.

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Ride-hailing company Uber is now making it easier to safely sip wine in the Hill Country.

The ride-hailing company recently introduced its service in Fredericksburg, a town at the heart of the country’s second largest grape-growing and winemaking region. The Fredericksburg area is home to more than 40 vineyards and wineries.

“Whether you are headed to dinner with friends or visiting one of the many vineyards or wineries in the area, Uber offers access to an affordable and convenient way to get around town,” Trevor Theunissen, Uber’s public affairs lead in Texas, says in an announcement about the Fredericksburg launch.

Uber isn’t the only option for visitors to sample Frederickburg’s vino without fear of traveling tipsy, but it’s arguably the most prominent. A dozen wine tour and shuttle companies currently operate in the area, according to the Fredericksburg Convention and Visitor Bureau. In addition, Austin-based My Ride TX provides an app that connects customers in Fredericksburg with independent drivers.

Uber says its Fredericksburg rollout was made possible after new statewide regulations paved the way for Uber and its chief rival, Lyft, to restart service in Austin. Under the law, drivers for the companies are not required to undergo fingerprint-based background checks.

The state law supersedes a City of Austin ordinance that mandated such checks for ride-hailing drivers. The ordinance triggered Uber’s and Lyft’s departure from the Austin market in May 2016. Uber and Lyft returned to the Austin market one year later after the state law was revised.

wine hill-country transportation

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.

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