News and notes from around the interweb:n
- Arguments against tipping
- How an ex-cop “obsessed with achieving the gold medallion airline status” rigged the McDonald’s Monopoly game and stole millions. (HT: Ryan C.)
- Hyatt made a brief play to grow its footprint 50% acquiring Spanish chain NH Hotels but mere days later says it isn’t going to happen. A Thai company owns nearly half the shares is is positioned to acquire the brand.
Hyatt has failed in its attempt to acquire Kimpton, Starwood, and now NH Hotels. Who’s next? They’re a tough acquisition target because their market cap is large relative to their size and because their dual share class structure that gives the Pritzker family outsized control precluding anything but a friendly deal.
Hesperia Mallorca Villamil, Credit: NH Hotels - United continues its plan to grow its hubs with feeder traffic from small cities where there’s less low cost carrier competition, preferring connecting traffic over non-stops.
At @united, they are building out service from hubs to smaller cities. Here are the additions in the last four months. pic.twitter.com/1WtNimNrG6
— David Koenig (@airlinewriter) July 30, 2018
- Tourist accidentally gets locked in old Governors Island prison
- The Marriott-Starwood global empire, visualized the chain now has 6500 properties.
I’m curious how much United makes on these routes. I’ve never heard of Presque Island, Maine. A one way flight there is roughly 319$ from EWR. While EWR to Orlando is like 58$. I’m guessing this has to be federally subsidized in some way?
F*ck tipping!
I’m pleased about the Hyatt non-acquisition. It’s a challenge to make Globalist with their small footprint…and I would love to have more international award opportunities. However, if they are going to acquire, which they seem destined to do, I hope they will go more upscale. The growth of Hyatt has mostly been in the mid-price range and that does not help those of us that do not like sleeping next to a noisy window box air conditioner. Loews and Omni are nice properties but they are mostly in locations that are already well represented by Hyatt – and have virtually no international presence.
F*ck tipping, indeed. I try to tip in line with what I believe to be normal, but ‘normal’ is very hard to define in many contexts.
I applaud all initiatives for the price I pay for any service to be all-inclusive.
I dislike tipping because anybody who has a job deserves to be paid a living wage by their employer! If they wanted to depend on the charity/ generosity of strangers, they could become a busker (street musician!) Also, the standard percentage has increased over the decades from 10% to 15% to 18–20%, which means the restaurant & bar owners are shirking ever more of their duty to pay a living wage. Finally, some bartenders regard those who tip normally as “cheapskates” because they’ve been spoiled by customers who overtip to hit on them.
OTOH, I have noticed that service in restaurants is usually better in North America than in non-tipping countries, probably because the waitstaff know that the customers control their take-home pay!