TRAVEL NEWS.

Reasons for Traveling Vary, Say Agents Polled. In the annual Late Summer/Fall Travel Trends Survey, Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates owners, managers and agents selected the reasons most often mentioned from customers for their decision to begin traveling again this year. Forty-five percent said customers had pent-up demand and just didn't want to wait any longer. Thirty-one percent said the customers indicated they had never stopped traveling in the first place. Twenty-five percent of customers mentioned a renewed confidence in the economy, and 20 percent of clients said they were more confident about safety. Sixteen percent also said they were less concerned about global conflicts, and three percent said they were more confident about health matters such as SARS and Norwalk Virus. Sep 27, 2004

Expedia now has a vacation package planning tool available that shows customers how much they are saving by booking a package rather than separate components. Expedia said that last month the average saved by using a package was $193. Users can search for a vacation package and click on "details" to see the cost comparison. Other recent additions are a hotel rate calendar that shows the rates for a two-month window if a traveler has flexible dates to find the lowest prices, hotel room layout view, more virtual tours and amenity descriptions, and its own hotel rating system. Sep 14, 2004