FWIW: Northwest World Vacations has packages to Montréal from all 50 states. Prices include specially discounted airfares. Ex. LAX-YUL 3 night package at the CP Queen Elizabeth Hotel comes to $744.00 USD with all taxes and service charges included. I broke it down and the result was $339 for the airfare and $135 a night for the hotel. During the FAQ, the Queen Elizabeth Hotel appears to be the only hotel option, and it is one of their most expensive. The hotel is a flagship property for the CP chain of hotels and is associated with Fairmount and Princess hotels and resorts.

Unfortunately I must cancel my plans to attend the FAQ. A conflicting event has been scheduled, so I'll be in Norfolk, NE instead of Montreal. I wish bon temps to all.

Sad to see you unable to make it, TransWorldOne. Hope that I'll get to meet you at one of the other "swap meets".

For those of you wanting some comedic diversion at the FAQ (apart from me), here is a link to the "Just For Laughs" website:
http://www.hahaha.com/english/index.html



[This message has been edited by flyme2 (edited 06-12-2000).]

My schedule just changed around & I might actually be able to be in Montreal that Saturday night...

Great news from a FlyerTalker LIVE comrade: opus17 Three cheers!

According to my latest records this is our roster:
Catman... Punki & Joe... Hammertoad & wife... kokonutz (aka Matt Wald)... Karen2 & Einar... RichG... NJDavid & Helen... Jim_B... AusTXHiker... BlondeBomber & Terry... kyklin & Danielle... AnnaS... Auh2o... Flyaway... Shareholder... dgolds... vulcan & spouse... johna... BillMorrow & spouse... Fisch... Beckles & Pixie... CanadianFlyer and CanadianHoneyBun... Ling... nj_flyer... Applefan... SMessier... Scott the Flyer... Captain Mike & family... Dorian... Jetsetter... a flygirl... opus17... and of course your host, Flyme2 and wife, Brigitte!

If I've left anyone out, or failed to remove your name if you can't make it, please let me know.

FAQ FARE WATCH:

Jul 21-24

There is still availability from select West coast cities to ALB in the $198 USD RT range. ALB is about 3 1/2 hours south of YUL. These cities include:

• LAX
• SAN
• SEA
• SJC
  

My condolences, TW1. As a former Nebraskan, I know Norfolk doesn't even come close to Winnipeg, let alone Montreal. Make sure to schedule a stop at Zesto, though.

Oh, and I'll be the first to say for this fall, GO HUSKERS!

MileCrazy has added his name to the roster! Three more hearty cheers!

A beautiful Saturday in Montréal today. Great weather (sunny and warm), 100% full hotel occupancy due to the Grand Prix, and the first installment of the Benson & Hedges Fireworks! Celebrity sightings: Beatle George Harrison, Late Night host David Letterman and former Grand Prix Champion Emerson Fitipaldi all at the Grand Prix trials...Michael Schumacher's fifth pole position for the Montreal F1 event!
The fireworks were SPECTACULAR! If you've never seen 30 minutes of state of the art international pyrotechnic display, you just don't know the level of intricacy and sophistication that fireworks have achieved in the last few years. Simply astounding. I'm sure very few have ever witnessed the grandeur of it all.
If you are coming to the FAQ, PLEASE do consider staying to watch the 10:00 PM Sunday night extravaganza. It'll be worth the extra hotel night!

For those of you wishing to stay at the Sheraton Centre-Ville, Starwood has just come out with a summer sale promotion:

Preferred Getaways

Reserve 14 Days Prior To Arrival And Receive A 25% Discount Off The Best Available Rate(Rte Already Discounted)
Register With An American Express Card And Get A 4 Pm Late C/Out, subject To Availability

I've checked the rates for rooms during the FAQ and something interesting came up. Book all 3 nights together (Fri, Sat, Sun) and pay a rate of $199 CAD ($132 USD) per night. Tweak your reservation strategy a bit, and book all nights separately and this is what you get:

• Fri, Jul 21 $199 CAD $132 USD
• Sat, Jul 22 $155 CAD $103 USD
• Sun, Jul 23 $119 CAD $ 79 USD
  
  You save $124 CAD ($83 USD) by booking all three nights in this manner.
  

[This message has been edited by flyme2 (edited 06-18-2000).]

Received an email today from Air Canada. They will be most happy to host us on Monday. As their Aeroplan Centre is nearby our hotels, I propose we start with a morning at the call Centre to see the other side of how a FF program operates. We would then pile into our vehicles and head out to Dorval Airport, where we'd spend the rest of the morning/early afternoon at the Maintenace Centre. This is where AC handles its major overhaul and maintenance services for itself and other carriers. It is the largest such facility in Canada, and one of the largest in North America.

For those who have flights that day, you can head over to the terminal from there. AC would also like those of us interested to meet with a number of their senior execs to talk about improving service and dealing with the merger. I plan to present the results of our FlyerTalk posts under the heading of "Perfect Airline" which we Canadian-based FTers have been filling up over the past two months.

So, I need to know who would like to take part in all or any of these activities on Monday. I know several of you had planned to attend the Bombardier/Canadair tour, but I will need you to reconfirm if you are interested in this Air Canada one. You can skip the Aeroplan part and just meet us at the Dorval Maintenance Centre, or do the Aeroplan one and share the ride to Dorval for your earlier flights home.

(We'll leave time for a light lunch at the airport once other logistics are firmed up.)

I await your emails (and posts, but if you do post, please also email me.

Well kudos, Shareholder: Your persistence has paid off. A very enjoyable and practical end to the FAQ...at the airport! Count me and the 4 extra seats in my vehicle as confirmed and available in that order. Once again, thanks for doing this.

BTW and somewhat OMNI: In response to your email about the Bombardier annual shareholders' meeting of which I was a part, let me tell you...it was the biggest party I have been to in recent memory. Good financial reports from all divisions (with the exception of the recreational vehicle division...although they have a new product which may soon change that) made all 3,000 shareholders present giddy with delight. Q & A session couldn't have been tamer had it been orchestrated by the PR dept., and the lunch they served all the attendees was worthy of the signature restaurant in a 5***** hotel.
I caught a tour of the Global Express business jet product and was impressed with the fit and finish (and the profitability). The many displays ranged from the NY Subway train to the CRJ 700 (70 pax) carrying UA Express colours. In the next few months the CRJ 900 (90 pax) series will be sure to be announced and I anticipate a good response from the major airlines seeking short haul jet service between feeder airports and their hubs.
The tail sections under tarp I spotted earlier this year? CRJ 70's.
Did you know that if you had purchased 1,000 shares of Bmbr B in 1985 for roughly $32,500 CAD you would today own 128,000 shares equal to $5,216,000.00 CAD. That is a 40% annual return over 15 years. Let's hope the trend continues. Shares will split 2/1 on July 07.

Thanks for the Bombardier AGM update. Sorry to have missed it, but next year I'll be based in Toronto and it will be easier and cheaper to get in for such things. (Yes, I find AGM lunches superb. Imagine what the one after the Four Seasons Hotel meeting must be like!) Let's hope that growth continues, but remember they went from snowmobiles in the 50s to become the number one producer of commuter jets and passenger railcars in the 90s. Not sure what they could do in a similiar vein that would result in such growth. (And it didn't hurt picking up Canadair and deHavilland for next to nothing from the feds and Boeing!) Apparently the Global Express is assembled in Toronto along with the Dash8s (if the workers ever go back to work).



[This message has been edited by Shareholder (edited 06-23-2000).]

FWIW, On the pleasures of Montreal from the NY Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/library/trave.../wd000618.html