The French police have arrested an Air France flight attendant accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars in cash, traveler’s checks and jewelry from dozing business-class passengers on dozens of international flights, judicial officials said Tuesday. Authorities arrested the flight attendant on the tarmac at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris early Friday, according to a report in the newspaper Le Figaro. An investigation began in January after five passengers aboard an Air France flight to Paris from Tokyo reported the disappearance of a total of $5,000 in cash. - New York Times (thanks to the lovely Maria for the tip)

Social networking first significantly influenced the world of travel in 1999 with the start of Couchsurfing, a service in which members offer a spare couch — or bed, or floor space — to fellow Couchsurfers, at no charge. It spawned a social phenomenon, and today counts almost two million people in 238 countries as members. - read more at nytimes.com

And if you want more than a couch, the above story is mostly about renting (cheaply) private accommodations that are quite nice, assuming you can avoid the odd psycopath.

‘The head of the nation’s most fee-happy airline told Congress today that bringing luggage on vacation was “not essential” to travel and his airline was actually helping the poor fly by charging up to $45 to place a carry-on bag in the overhead bin.’ - ABC

A reminder, Spirit charges for carry-ons but not for one personal bag which must fit underneath a seat and measure 16 x 14 x 12” (40 x 35 x 30cm) or less.