THIS WEEK'S HEADLINES

:: Passport to play: Island hoppers, border crossers will need one by 2008
July 27, 2006 - Starting Jan. 1, people traveling by air or sea to popular U.S. vacation destinations such as the Caribbean, Mexico and Canada will need a passport. Drivers crossing at land borders will need passports by Jan. 1, 2008

:: Green Cards Would Mean Fingerprinting at Airports
July 27, 2006 - The nation’s estimated 12 million legal permanent residents would be subject to fingerprinting every time they re-entered the United States, under a plan the Homeland Security Department intends to announce Thursday.

:: Best ways to book: Agent or online?
July 27, 2006 - Customers lured by convenience and promises of the best deal are booking more trips online. But is Internet booking always the better way to go? That depends on the traveler and the type of trip.

:: Airfares soar as planes fill up
July 27, 2006 - Soaring jet fuel prices and rising traveler demand are driving high airfares even higher. Fares for flights departing in the USA rose a record 10.3% in the first quarter of 2006 from a year ago, according to data released by the Department of Transportation (DOT) on Wednesday.

:: NWA Charges GDS Fees
July 24, 2006 - Northwest Airlines has become the latest domestic carrier to impose per-segment booking fees on travel agents using certain GDSs.

:: Dulles adds security lanes for elite United customers
United says its elite frequent-flier members flying out of the airline’s Washington Dulles hub can now use “new security checkpoints exclusively for our first, business and elite travelers, their families or travel companions.”