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Archive for the ‘Destinations’


First Flight: Salt Lake City to Paris

Viva la France! It was a great day for Salt Lake City and Delta when the first transatlantic flight to Paris launched last week. It was over 2 years in the planning but state, city and county officials along with the business community came together to bring Europe a little closer to Utah.

The festivities started with the arrival flight from Paris. The airport officials graciously offered to meet the flight with a water cannon salute and a police escort to the Delta gate – it was quite a site for the media to cover this historic event from the tarmac. Upon arrival at the gate, the customers were greeted by Utah volunteers who provided them with a gift bag commemorating the inaugural flight. The customers were completely shocked by the enormous crowd outside the customs area when they arrived!

On the other side of the gate, the activities for the departing flight were in full swing. The Paris Restaurant in SLC provided yummy French cuisine including chocolate truffles that were to die for!!! The local Delta airport staff served the crowd of several hundred people. Janet Todd, a local musician, serenaded the crowd with her French accordion music.

All the local politicians were in attendance for the ribbon cutting ceremony – a last minute change to a meeting allowed Governor Jon Huntsman, SLC Mayor Ralph Becker and Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Caroon to be present at the gate to help cut the inaugural ribbon along with the Delta flight crew.

The customers were interviewed by the local media and some of the great stories included a gentleman who was traveling to Paris to meet his internet girlfriend, winners of radio promotions who had never been out of the country and a local SLC resident was traveling to Bristol, England via Paris which reduced his normal travel time by 5 hours.

It was a great day for the airport as well. Brett Rydault, Delta’s station manager, organized pizza parties for the Delta employees to celebrate. I was fortunate enough to be on the inaugural flight to Paris. It was one of the more memorable experiences I’ve had in my 17 years with Delta. As the Delta airport staff gathered on the tarmac to wave goodbye, the water cannon salute bid the flight “bon voyage”!

Julie

Marketing Manager

Delta Air Lines

International Expansion from NYC

By now you’re probably already aware that Delta Air Lines has transformed itself pretty significantly over the past several years, and we continue to do so. While Delta has flown international routes for years, we’ve really worked hard over the past several years to make the world a little bit smaller, so to speak, by taking our customers to more of the exciting global destinations that are important to them.

If you’re a New Yorker who thinks of Delta as the airline to take you and your family on vacation to Orlando, or as the airline known for the Delta Shuttle to Boston or Washington, I’d ask you to please keep reading. Sure, we can help you enjoy the chance to see Mickey; and we’re very proud of our Shuttle product that makes quick business trips to Beantown or the nation’s capital a snap. However, today’s Delta Air Lines is so much more. Since 2005, Delta has implemented one of the world’s most extensive global route expansions. Over the past three years, Delta has added more than 90 new international routes. With 306 cities served (as of April 23, 2008) and counting, Delta and Delta Connection carriers serve more destinations worldwide than any other airline. Yes, you read correctly.

Now, our frequent customers might have picked up on the fact that springtime - say, March through June or so - is the period during which we typically launch many of our newest international routes for the calendar year. So, ’tis the season for new international flights from New York City. Whether you’re traveling for business or seeking to be the first among your friends to experience an exciting new vacation destination, here are some of Delta’s newest international flights, along with 2008 launch dates, from New York-JFK:

You can always explore the many places that Delta can take you from New York by visiting our interactive route map on delta.com (it’s pretty cool; give it a try). Let us know how our newest international destinations are helping to make your world a little bit smaller.

As always, thank you for your support of Delta Air Lines. We appreciate your business.

Brian T. Rutter
Director - Sales & Marketing
New York

San Diego: Sunshine and Spring

With great weather, 70 miles of sandy beaches and world class family attractions, San Diego offers a variety of things to see and do for guests of all ages.

We had so many choices we actually had a hard time just picking a handful of our favorites. We hope you take the time to seek out a few of our recommendations. You won’t be disappointed!

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Do you have any tips to add?

Deedra & Elizabeth

Flight Attendants - SLC based

DC: The Great American Melting Pot

With hundreds of national landmarks, museums, centers of the arts and cultural experiences, one could really spend a whole week in Washington, D.C. and still not see it all.

For Bonnie and I (and many Washingtonians), the National Mall is so much more than a mega building with great stores and food courts. It’s strolling in the open air among the Smithsonian buildings, seeing the Monuments, the Capitol, and people watching at the Conservatory. It’s visiting the Cherry Blossom Festival in Spring, sampling American Indian cooking at the Native American Museum in Summer, watching the leaves change in the Fall, and ice skating at the Sculpture Gallery in the Winter.

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It’s a fun city to explore, especially when you have a good friend to share it with. We had a blast filming our video, it’s too bad we don’t include the bloopers. I’m sure the editor had a big job cutting out all our laughter.

Do you have any trip tips about Washington, D.C. to add?

Hope you enjoy!

Terri (and Bonnie)

DCA Crown Room Club

Hello Heathrow!

LondonThis week Delta has expanded our international network yet again!

We recently added new routes to both Shanghai, China (PVG) and London, England (LHR), giving our customers access to even MORE international destinations than ever before.

In addition, we have also introduced a tool that will give you greater flexibility during the booking process. The next time you visit delta.com try searching for code LON. Starting today, these new three letter destination codes will help make booking in multi-airport cities, like London, a breeze.
Which of Delta’s LON airports do you prefer flying to/from, Heathrow’s Terminal 4 or Gatwick’s North Terminal?

Cheers!

Katie
Delta Blog