Maggots on a plane, plus four far less disgusting travel stories from the last week.
There’s not a single day that’s devoid of newsworthy travel stories. Not just news about rules and country updates, but also freaky, unusual, and surprising stories. We’ve gathered the five oddest travel tales from the last week, which involve stowaway, digital nomads, and maggots raining down on passengers.
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MAGGOTS FELL ON PASSENGERS
Airport security typically errs on the side of caution. Passengers arent’t even allowed to take a bottle of water, so how did rotting fish swarming with maggots make it on the plane?
This happened on a Delta flight from Amsterdam to Detroit. A passenger noticed maggots falling on a fellow passenger from the overhead compartment. A flight attendant was called who determined that a passenger was carrying fish in their carry-on bag and it had gone bad. The smelly fish was wrapped in plastic and taken to the back of the plane, but the pilot soon announced that they had to turn around.
Delta later apologized for the inconvenience of “an improperly packed carry-on bag,” and offered 8,000 miles, a $30 meal ticket, and hotel compensation to aggrieved passengers.
ANOTHER PASSENGER FLEW WITHOUT A TICKET
Fish many have gone undetected on a Delta flight, but somehow a woman boarded an American Airlines flight in Nashville without a ticket. She jumped a barrier to get through airport security and proceeded to grab a seat on a five-hour flight to Los Angeles, where the security breach was noted. She was arrested on arrival, but it’s baffling how this could have happened–again!
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Stowaway incidents like these have been in the news for weeks—a man flew from Denmark to Los Angeles without a passport or ticket, then another tail-gated airport security to get from London to New York.
AIR CANADA LOST MONEY OVER CHATBOT SCREW UP
Have you asked ChatGPT to plan your trip? Have you been greeted by a chatbot on an airline website? Artificial intelligence is part of the travel industry now—in a variety of ways that aren’t evident to users (like flight pricing). But what happens when this technology fails?
Air Canada witnessed it first-hand when a customer was given false information by a chatbot about a bereavement fare. A customer bought a full-price ticket after confirming with the chatbot that he would qualify for a refund within 90 days—a claim that was later rejected by the airline. The customer took the airline to court and Air Canada denied responsibility, stating that the chatbot was responsible for its own actions and the right information was available on the website.
The court, however, struck down Air Canada’s defense and ordered it to pay the difference with interest and fees. It noted that the chatbot was part of the airline’s website and it made no difference whether the information came from a bot or a page. The judge also stated that the customer wouldn’t know which section of the website is accurate.
Related: Airline Blames Passenger for Believing the Information on Its Website
AIRBNB HOST BLACKMAILED GUESTS
Airbnb has gained a bad rep due to all the hidden charges and cleaning fees, along with scamming hosts and unreal listings. It has also lost support in touristy cities where it is outpricing locals and making it unaffordable for people to own or rent houses. And this story has landed the company in hot water once again.
The Independent reported that an Airbnb host in Memphis sent a photograph of the guest with another woman to his wife. The Airbnb host wanted the guest to pay additional fines for having guests over and when he refused, she sent his photograph to his work’s email address. When Airbnb was contacted by the guest, they didn’t take action and instead told him he needed to pay the charges.
Now the guest is suing Airbnb and the host.
JAPAN LAUNCHES DIGITAL NOMAD VISA
American tourists have been taking advantage of the weakening yen, which has made it possible to get more bang for the buck in Japan. In December, the Asian country welcomed a record-breaking number of 2.73 million tourists, up 8% from 2019.
Now the popular destination is using a new way to attract travelers for longer visits: the digital nomad visa program. Visitors from 49 countries—including the U.S.—can stay and work remotely in the country for up to six months from March. To qualify, you need an annual income of 10 million yen (upwards of $66,000) and private health insurance. The nation won’t issue a residence card and renewals aren’t likely; nonetheless, it’s a much better deal than the 90-day tourist visa if you’re looking to spend a long duration.
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as for that incident with the smelly fish and the maggots I wonder who is doing the baggage inspection before the passenger got on board. How did they miss the smell? Clearly, somebody made a huge mistake.