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Here are this week’s travel news headlines from around the web and interweb I found the most interesting. Take a look:
High Country News published a stunning and sobering long-form piece this week that every Alaska cruise traveler should read. Last August, a massive landslide at the end of Tracy Arm fjord, a popular destination for cruise ships near Juneau, triggered a tsunami with a wave run-up of 1,580 feet on nearby mountainsides, the second-largest ever recorded. Three kayakers 30 miles away barely survived it. The cause: retreating glaciers destabilize the mountainsides above them, and as climate change accelerates glacial melt, the frequency of these events is increasing across Southeast Alaska. Nearly all major cruise lines have now rerouted their Tracy Arm sailings for 2026 as a result. Scientists monitoring a similar unstable slope above Portage Glacier near Anchorage say it could collapse catastrophically into the lake within the next few years. A cruise ship caught in Tracy Arm at the wrong time would have faced waves over 100 feet high. Worth a read before you book any fjord excursion.
Onboard security allegedly found a 35-year-old Spanish passenger in possession of cocaine and cannabis and distributing them during the 10-night sailing. Greek Coast Guard officers were waiting at the next port, Chania, Crete, to arrest him when the ship arrived. He appeared before a prosecutor and was released and flown back to Spain, though Greek drug laws can carry penalties up to life imprisonment for large-scale operations. Virgin Voyages confirmed he would not be allowed to rejoin the sailing. No refund either. Never EVER bring any kind of drugs on a cruise ship. Even prescription drugs, legal where you live, could get you kicked off the ship – or worse – in many places!
Our condolences go out to the family. A crew member aboard the Regal Princess went overboard in the early hours of Monday, July 13, while the ship was sailing off the coast of Cancún, Mexico, on a 7-day Western Caribbean itinerary out of Fort Lauderdale. The captain announced the man overboard alert just before 6 a.m. local time. The ship, Mexican maritime authorities, and the crew of the nearby Carnival Jubilee all participated in the search. Princess Cruises later confirmed the crew member was found dead. The Cozumel port call was canceled due to the delay; the ship has since resumed its itinerary. Princess Cruises says foul play is not suspected. One important note from maritime attorneys: the Regal Princess, like nearly every other major cruise ship, does not have an automatic man overboard detection system, despite the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act of 2010 legally requiring it. That gap continues to cost lives.
NASA’s X-59 QueSST quiet supersonic research aircraft is actively in flight testing, and NBC News sat down with two of the test pilots for an interview that AvGeeks will want to watch. The pilots describe how crossing the supersonic threshold in the X-59 is almost underwhelming — you only know you’ve done it by watching the speed gauges, because the aircraft transitions so smoothly. There’s no drama, no buffeting, no sense of crossing some invisible wall. One pilot said the plane simply “wants to go fast,” and getting it up to supersonic speed feels more like a natural extension of the aircraft’s desire than something you have to muscle through. The goal of the X-59 program is to generate data that could lead to FAA approval of commercial supersonic flight over land. The interview with both test pilots is absolutely worth your time.
This one gave me a smile. Bastiand Matti came to the U.S. for the World Cup fully expecting the version of America he’d seen in European headlines. Germany was knocked out, and he stayed anyway, eventually posting a heartfelt video on Twitter saying he “came for the World Cup and stayed because of the people.” He urged other Europeans to come experience America for themselves rather than judge it through headlines. The post went viral. It’s a good reminder that travel has always been the best antidote to second-hand impressions of places, and that American hospitality has a way of surprising people who’ve only ever read about the country from a distance.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian announced on the Q2 earnings call that spending on Delta-branded American Express cards has grown by double digits for seven consecutive quarters and is expected to hit $9 billion in remuneration this year alone, up 10% over 2025. He and Amex are thrilled. And here’s where it gets sad for the rest of us. All of that spending is generating SkyMiles, and the value of those miles has quietly become one of the worst in the industry. Delta’s SkyMiles program has no award chart, dynamic pricing, and has been widely criticized for opaque and often punishing redemption values. In 2026, most points experts agree you’re better off with a 2% cash back card or virtually any other airline’s co-branded card for daily spending than burning your dollars into SkyMiles. The more people spend on these cards without understanding the true value of what they’re earning, the more Delta and Amex profit. Know what your miles are actually worth before you swipe (other than for a new card bonus that is).
Reuters reports that Boeing is close to receiving FAA approval for the redesigned engine anti-ice system that has been blocking certification of the 737 MAX 7 and MAX 10 variants for years. The issue: the existing system could overheat and thermally damage the nacelle during prolonged icing conditions, and no waiver was acceptable as a long-term fix. Boeing has now finalized its redesigned system, which will be installed on new aircraft and retrofitted across the existing MAX fleet. Southwest Airlines, which holds around 289 MAX 7 orders, expects FAA approval by August 2026 with deliveries starting in early 2027. WestJet is lined up as the MAX 10 launch operator. This has been one of the longest-running dramas in commercial aviation, and for airlines that have been waiting years on these deliveries, this is genuinely meaningful progress.
It’s happening again. A summer heat wave across Central Europe has dropped water levels on the Danube and Rhine to the point where cruise ships can’t safely navigate key stretches. Passengers on Avalon, AmaWaterways, Uniworld, and Tauck sailings right now are being put on coaches to cover sections the ships can’t pass. In some cases, travelers are spending the first three days of their “river cruise” on a bus before ever boarding a ship. One Danube gauge at Nagymaros, Hungary, dropped to 51 centimeters below its low-water reference point as of this week. This is one of the most important things people need to understand about river cruising, and it’s why timing matters so much. High water typically hits in spring; low water is a summer risk, especially July and August. When you book a river cruise, you are not guaranteed to spend your vacation on a ship. You may end up on a bus or in a hotel instead, with limited compensation. If you’re considering a European river cruise, talk to your travel agent about the best windows and ask specifically about the cruise line’s water-level contingency policies before you book.
Were there any crazy or interesting travel news stories you found interesting that I missed? If so please drop a comment below and include a link to the story! – René
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened. This relationship may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Reader comments reflect the views of the individuals who wrote them, are not reviewed or endorsed by Eye of the Flyer or by any advertiser, and should not be treated as advice. Some links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
