Traveling in style - Entrepreneur Magazine's 3rd Annual Business Travel Awards to honor the best services

Entrepreneur, March, 1996 by Christopher McGinnis

Entrepreneur's 3rd Annual Business Travel Awards

GLITTERING cities, first- class flights, luxury hotels, unlimited expense accounts . . . traveling on business sounds glamorous to those who don't actually do it. The unpleasant reality is that business travel can be grueling--hard on the back, hard on the family and increasingly hard on the wallets of entrepreneurs who must pay their own way with no corporate expense accounts to fall back on.

The pleasant reality is that the travel industry is increasingly embracing this new breed of traveler. Our 3rd Annual Business Travel Awards recognize those companies that offer the right combination of price, service and loca- tion for entrepreneurs.

Category: Airlines

Best Domestic Coach Class: Alaska Airlines

Almost any traveler who flies the West Coast corridor from Alaska to the Baja Peninsula praises Alaska Airlines. It has the personality of a friendly, low-cost regional carrier plus the frequencies, in-flight service and frequent flier program of a major airline. Reservations: (800) 426-0333.

Best Domestic Business Class: Tower Air

Tower Air matches the lowest fares of the major carriers it competes with but has no restrictions.

A one-way business-class fare runs about $230--one-third or one-fourth of what you'd pay on a major carrier.

Nonstop transcontinental flights run between New York's Kennedy airport (its base) and Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, and San Juan, Puerto Rico. One drawback: Tower doesn't offer the same flight frequency major airlines do. Reservations: (800) 34-TOWER.

Best Domestic Low-Fare Airline: ValuJet

Feisty ValuJet Airlines has flourished by competing with the freeway, not the major air carriers. Its simple, three-fare-only structure and frill-free flights are attracting a growing number of value-conscious business travelers, while its money-saving ticketless travel system has become a model for the industry.

Just over 2 years old, ValuJet now has 26 destinations in 17 states in the South, East and Midwest. Bonus: No round-trip or Saturday-night stayovers are required. Reservations: (800) VALUJET.

Best Trans-Atlantic Business Class: Continental BusinessFirst

For the third year in a row, Continental earns our kudos. Although many other carriers now offer similar first-class service at a business-class price, Continental offers it to the greatest number of European business hubs. Com- bine that with a generous frequent flier program and feeder service from most major U.S. cities, and you've got a winner.

BusinessFirst offers 38 percent more legroom than many other major airlines' traditional business classes, extra-wide sleeper seats, personal entertainment systems featuring high-resolution in-seat video screens and six channels of virtually continuous multilingual programming, plus good food. Reservations: (800) 231-0856.

Best Trans-Pacific Business Class: WorldBusiness Class on Northwest

On potentially grueling trans-Pacific flights, Northwest has the space and pampering you need at a business-class fare. WorldBusiness Class boasts 50 inches between seats that recline a full 10 inches, excellent meals, personal video screens, and duty-free shopping on all trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific flights.

Northwest also offers flights to more Asian cities than any other U.S. air- line. Reservations: (800) 447-4747.

Best Trans-Atlantic Economy Class: Virgin Atlantic

Virgin's economy class is like no other, with contoured seats that maximize legroom; adjustable headrests; 16-channel interactive seat-back video entertainment systems; free drinks; free amenity kits including reusable elec- tronic headsets, socks and eyeshades; and ice cream during movies. Virgin flies between London and New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, and Miami and Orlando, Florida. Reservations: (800) 862-8621.

Best Frequent Flier Program: American AAdvantage

Boasting more than 25 million members worldwide, AAdvantage offers the most ways to earn airline points without even flying. Members can earn points on the interest they pay on home mortgages, by dining out at a growing number of restaurants, or from American Eagle, hotels, car rental companies, other air- lines, and other nontravel-related participants. Call (800) 433-7300.

Best Airline Club: Continental Presidents Club

Membership in most airline clubs costs $200 to $300 per year, but Continental's Presidents Club offers a unique deal: a 30-day trial membership for only $30. In addition to a respite from the madhouse airport atmosphere, most Presidents Clubs locations offer conference rooms, reservation/check-in service, refreshments, free local phone calls, photocopiers and fax service. Information: (800) 322-2640.

Category: Hotels

Best Individual Hotel Value, New York: Manhattan East Suite Hotels

Entrepreneurs willing to forego opulent lobbies and luxury services for a nice room in a good neighborhood at a reasonable price will find what they need at the Manhattan East Suite Hotels. This group of nine hotels offers all the standard business services, plus the money-saving opportunity to cook your own meals in fully equipped kitchens. There's also a grocery shopping service ($5), coin-op laundry facilities, fax machines, dataports for your computer and fax, cable television, free coffee and ironing boards. Corporate rates start at $159 to $189. Reservations: (800) ME-SUITE.