Mumbai07 Sep 22 1 Traveller Economy
Showing International Flight from Houston
About Houston
Houston is one of the large cities in the Texas state of the US. The city extends to the Galveston Bay and is home to NASA's Space Center. Much of the training that astronauts undergo to prepare them for their space venture takes place at the Space Center Houston. The city of Houston is known for its vibrant lifestyle and a slew of educational complexes. Houston is blessed with some immaculate museums and art galleries that celebrate the history of North America and Native Americans.
Due to its proximity with Mexico, the culture of Houston is interspersed with Texan as well as Mexican vibe. In fact, Tex-Mex is a famous term thrown around in the city for the confluence of cultures. Flight connectivity to Houston from major international cities is excellent. However, there are no direct flights to the city from India. Connecting flights and layovers are some of the things a traveller will have to prepare oneself with before boarding the flight. Booking hotels in Houston before the scheduled trip is recommended.
Best time to visit Houston
Houston's proximity with the Gulf of Mexico brings in all the heat while the winters are pleasant too. February to April and September to November, basically the springtime and fall are the best seasons to plan for a trip to Houston. Most of the year, Houston sees a temperature ranging between 26 degree Celsius to 34 degree Celsius. With a warm climate throughout the year, springtime and fall are the only seasons where it blends a balance between warm and cold climates. May to August can be quite hot and humid, which is not the most pleasant time to visit. During this time, though, the hotel prices drop as there are barely any tourists visiting the city. For those coming from hot climates wouldn't want to stick around for long as the humid and stickiness in the air would be quite annoying if anything. Cheap and affordable flight deals to Houston will also be available specifically for the summer months. Luckily, there are events and festivals during this time that will keep you entertained if the heat is bothering your zen mode. Events such as Pasadena Strawberry Festival, Pride Houston, Dragon Boat Festival, Juneteenth Celebration and CITGO Freedom Over Texas.
These festivals basically reflect the culture and lifestyle of Houston. As you participate or play a spectator to them, you will learn a lot about the city as well as its cultural heritage and history. The months from September to November witness pleasant weather and numerous carnivalesque festivals. This could actually be a good time for you to don some fancy costumes and attend the Texas Renaissance Festival. The habitants also celebrate a Native American Pow Wow, which basically honours the tribe and their colourful life. The 2-day fair has a series of events taking place to engage the festival goers.
Festivals in the city continue throughout the year, but it is only during the spring and fall that locals or tourists actually get to enjoy them. The heat can be quite unbearable and especially when teamed with humidity. Spring, between February to April, is also a good time to visit the city. However, many tourists flock over to visit Houston right before the summers kick in. The hotel prices take a staggering hike, making accommodation tough. It would be best to be on the safe side, and book your hotel rooms in Houston, months ahead of the trip.
Places to visit in Houston
NASA's Space Centre in Houston is undoubtedly one of the biggest tourist attractions in the city. Well, you hear space, and you want to see how it works, right? Not to mention how the space centre does organise tours and events for tourists to indulge in as a means to educate them. Speaking of which, you should visit the Houston Museum District too. The complex literally has around 19 museums, including the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences, the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston and the Menil Collection, to name a few highlights. If you're a space geek, you'll definitely have a good time at the Johnson Space Center House and Houston Museum of Natural Science as well. The city bustles with insightful structures and institutions that would be quite educational and entertaining too. The city also has a Holocaust Museum where you will find exhibits depicting incidents from World War II. There is a specific museum dedicated to motorheads called the Art Car Museum which basically comprises automobiles and derby racers designed artistically.
The city's Armand Bayou Nature Centre is also quite famous for the plethora of flora and fauna it inhabits. With over 370 species of diverse wildlife including alligators, deer, eagles, turtles and armadillos, the place would be quite an engaging expedition as will be the Houston Zoo which has over 6,000 animals including cheetahs, bats, albino reptiles, giraffes and more. If you are a bibliophile, the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum will pique your interest.
Things to do in Houston
Houston has far too many things to do for a tourist to get tired. A walk around Hermann Park would be a good way to relax after all the excess sightseeing. Starting with shopping, The Galleria in Houston is popular for being one of the biggest shopping malls. The 2.4 million square feet area of The Galleria houses premium brands such as Christian Louboutin, Burberry, Chanel, Gucci, Giorgio Armani, to name a few. They have high-end brands like Gap and Forever 21 too. You can take up a walking tour of Haunted Houston Ghost. Located close to the Buffalo Bayou river, the haunted house tour basically takes you through the story of how the haunted house came into existence.
Food and restaurants in Houston
Houston has been holding the title as one of the best cities for foodies in the USA for quite some time now. It doesn't really come as a big shock since the city does have a lovely culinary spread featuring two major dishes, Tex-Mex and barbecued meat. In fact, as a city close to Mexico, the influence of the cuisine is quite strong here. From breakfast burritos to grilled meat, the city majorly favours these two dishes. You can even find some of the best restaurants that will elevate your senses and give you the beautiful blend of spices in Mexican food. Places such as Picos Restaurant, M&M Grill and Pappasito's Cantina have some lip-smacking fajitas and burritos that will make you a fan. In fact, Pappasito's fame also comes from the fact that Beyoncé was spotted in the vicinity. Houston's love for grilled meat is evident in the plethora of dishes that they serve. These also include roasted tender brisket, baby back ribs and more. The city does not fall short of BBQ establishments. In fact, some of the popular ones include Killen's Texas Barbecue, an establishment run by venerated chef Ronnie Killen. Along with the famed BBQ joint is the Jackson Street BBQ, another sweet joint for exquisite meat.
Not just barbecue and Mexican flavours but Houston also hosts a plethora of cuisines ranging from the Mediterranean to Japanese. In fact, their food culture is quite elaborate with some brilliant bars and restaurants serving varied cuisines. You can indulge in some buffet at Aladdin's Mediterranean Cuisine, get some of the Cajun cuisine action at Brennan's of Houston, sip on Japanese whiskey at Izakaya, enjoy a luxe French spread at Etoile Cuisine et Bar and more. The nightlife of Houston is just as lively as the food culture. There are several hip-hop dance clubs with recognised DJs supplying endless beats to keep the city in high spirits.
How to reach Houston
Houston has three major airports that serve the city. However, George Bush Intercontinental Airport is the only airport with international routes connecting the city globally. As one of the major airports in Houston, the airport witnesses tremendous passenger footfall. Hence, it is also known to be the tenth busiest airport in the United States. The flight connectivity of Houston to other major international cities is excellent. Even with cities from India, Houston has flights flying in and out. However, there are no direct flights to Houston from India. Since there are no direct flights to Houston, layovers and even connecting flights need to be taken for the passenger. The major airlines that service flights and connect Houston and India are Japan Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Swiss, United Airlines, Lufthansa, American Airlines, to name a few. Out of all the airlines, Turkish Airlines is the only one that directly connects with Houston with a layover in Istanbul. The flight to Houston takes the Middle Eastern international route to reach the United States.
One way flight tickets to Houston are decently priced. But if you wish to acquire cheap flight tickets to Houston for a round trip, you should ensure to book the ticket in advance and even look for online flight deals. Some of these online flight deals to Houston come as a package with hotel accommodations too. Try to get your hands on those to save as many greens as possible.
About Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines is recognised as one of the major American airlines with its headquarters in SeaTac, Washington. The airline works within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is touted to be in the top five of largest airlines list in the United States. The record is with respect to fleet size, passengers carried as on schedule along with the number of destinations it serves. Alaska Airlines also has subsidiaries with regional partners, namely, Horizon Air and SkyWest Airlines. Together, they operate a massive network domestic route. The primary focus is on connecting flights from Pacific Northwest and Alaska that network to over a hundred destinations within the United States, Mexico, Hawai, Costa Rica and Canada. Alaska Airlines' primary hub is at Seattle/Tacoma. It also includes four more hubs within the United States. The airline is currently not part of any of the three big airline alliances. However, it has been revealed that the airline does have plans to join forces with Oneworld by 2021. While it is not part of any of the airline alliances, Alaska Airlines has codeshare agreements with 17 airlines. These airlines include the members of the alliance of Oneworld, Star Alliance and SkyTeam.
The airline's operations commenced in 1944 and have been functioning through 76 years now. Alaska Airlines is headed by Alaska Air Group. The headquarters of Alaska Air Group is located in SeaTac, Washington. In 2018, Alaska Airlines unveiled some plans to construct a 128,000 square-foot to expand the office space and help accommodate the growing workforce. The new building is set to be located adjacent to Alaska's Corporate Headquarters.
Alaska Airlines' livery and logo have been retained for the last 50 years. It has the word Alaska on the front of the fuselage, and an image of a native Alaskan Eskimo sketched on the vertical stabiliser, which is the logo. The addition of Eskimo appeared first in 1972 along with three other logos. All of them are inspired by the Alaskan history, a totem pole, Russian spires and a gold miner. For the logo, the Eskimo is seen wearing a traditional qulittaq, which is a parka with a ruff. After a lot of edits and recommendations, eventually, in 2016, the livery and logo underwent a massive redesign and rebranding. The Alaskan wordmark was streamlined with a simplified design and an Eskimo logo. The ruffs on the parka of the Eskimo received some hues. The fuselage of planes in the Alaska Airlines has a jelly bean design along with waves of shades of blue (navy blue, teal, dark blue and green) flowing on the sides of the vertical stabiliser. Over the years, the airline has introduced Disney and Pixar-themed characters in the liveries.
Fleet size of Alaska Airlines
In total, Alaska Airlines operates about 321 aircraft as part of its fleet. Its primary fleet includes 166 Boeing 737 aircraft that have an average age of 9.1 years and 71 Airbus A320 aircraft with an average of 8.6 years. These are mostly reserved for international routes. Along with this, the airline's regional flights are also operated under the Alaska Airlines brand which operates aircrafts 33 Bombardier Q400 aircraft which has an average of 11.7 years and 30 Embraer 175 aircraft which has an average of 1.6 years. The two planes are Alaska-owned and are used by the regional airlines Horizon Air as well as SkyWest Airlines. As part of the mainline fleet, Alaska Airlines operates all all-Boeing 737 aircraft from 2008 until 2018. After 2018, the airline officially took charge of Virgin America's fleet comprising of the Airbus aircraft. Alaska Airline's long-term strategic plan is to return to its operations of the all-Boeing 737 mainline fleet. The transition to return to an all-Boeing mainline fleet might take a considerable amount of time as much of the Airbus A320 aircraft has been leased.
Contracts of the Airbus A320 family flights will be expiring somewhere between 2021 and 2024. The airline also supports cargo aircraft and includes three Boeing 737-700 freighter jets. These were formerly passenger aircraft, but they converted to cargo aircraft in 19 months between 2016 and 2017. The same was conducted by Israel Aerospace Industries. Alaska has since forever, functioned with various Boeing and Airbus aircraft as part of its fleet. They also had Convair 880 and Convair 990 jetliner in the 1960s. However, they have all ceased to operate since before the 1990s.
Alaska Airlines Baggage Allowance
Passengers travelling with Alaska Airlines are allowed to carry a plus one bag which should be the size of the 22'' x 14'' x 9''. The dimensions need to be followed, and this includes wheels and handles that should be measured ahead of the journey. Along with cabin baggage, Alaska Airlines' baggage allowance also enables you to carry a small handbag or laptop bag. It could also be a briefcase, as long as it can fit under the passenger seat. The Overhead bin can accommodate the carry-on bag while the small bag can be placed under the seat. You must go through the official website of Alaska Airlines to avoid carrying any unnecessary items onboard. The rule to carry one bag along with plus one bag are allowed for all first class, business class and other cabins in the aircraft. The airline also allows its passengers to extend the count for check-in baggage at a nominal fee.
Special baggage that can be carried along onboard is also available. These include bags with bulky and fragile items, perishable goods, sporting equipment and musical instruments. The airline also has special reservations for passengers who have health conditions to carry necessary medical equipment. These include medical syringes and other such medicinal drugs. Wheelchairs and strollers can also be taken within the flight cabin for passengers who have mobility issues or are travelling with infants. Details of regulation regarding special situations can be perused on Alaska Airlines' official website. For check-in bags, the weight of the baggage cannot exceed 23 kg, even for long haul flights taking international routes.
Alaska Airlines In-flight services
First-class - Alaska Airlines' in-flight services are phenomenal and differ depending on the cabin chosen by the passenger. If you are a first-class passenger, you will receive some exquisite perks, including that of priority boarding, complimentary hot meals, beverages and alcoholic cocktails, snacks and towel services. Further, you can also ask for blankets and pillows to make your journey comfortable. The first-class recliner seats are also available which have lavish legroom and privacy.
Premium Class - Instead of a separate business class, the airline directly has a Premium Class which is available on all of Alaska Airlines' mainline and regional aircraft. The premium cabin features some amazing seat pitch which is 35 ft with four more inches in the main cabin. Passengers also receive priority during boarding. In-flight services on Alaska Airlines' premium class include complimentary snacks, alcoholic beverages, fresh food that can be purchased and upgrades for elite fliers who are part of Alaska Airlines' mileage loyalty program. Premium class came into existence by the end of 2015 and has been rolled out since.
Main Cabin - The main cabin is the economy class where the passengers are entitled to receive complimentary snacks and non-alcoholic beverages. You can also order fresh meals, alcoholic beverages along with additional snacks that are up for purchase. All the seats on the main cabin have USB ports as well as power outlets to charge electronic gadgets such as tablets, mobile phones, laptops and more.
In-flight services - Alaska Airlines' in-flight services include complimentary meals as well as light snacks that will be served at the first-class cabin and can be purchased in other classes. The economy class also has "picnic packs" that can be purchased. The food prepared in the airlines has been curated by Seattle-based check Tom Douglas. In terms of entertainment, the airlines have the World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA). They have a hard-drive-based AVOD (Audio Video on Demand) players that offer a slew of films, TV shows and audio programs. Other benefits of Alaska Airlines' in-flight services include WiFi connectivity too. The equipped in-flight WiFi and streaming entertainment system makes networking on flight easier as well as surfing through the internet.
Popular routes and top cities for Alaska Airlines
Alaska Airlines' domestic routes and international route system has enabled excellent connectivity of more than 115 destinations worldwide. Majorly, the airline, along with its subsidiaries, caters to the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica and Canada. Alaska Airlines is predominantly one of the largest carriers catering to the West coast of the United States of America. The airline has a top presence in cities such as San Diego, Anchorage and Seattle, to name a few.
Why travel by Alaska Airlines?
Alaska Airlines is the perfect carrier for travelling across the West Coast in the United States. The airline connectivity is phenomenal as the domestic routes cover major cities. Not to mention how some of the international routes networks that connect with Mexico and Canada further add to the benefits of travelling by Alaska Airlines. Other perks of Alaska Airlines include web check-in, knowing about the flight status, checking the flight schedule and booking an Alaska Airlines flight online.
