International travel costly in the air as well as on the ground

If you're a new player on the international business travel scene, or if you have traveled internationally in the past but have not hacked your way through the global jungle recently - listen up, it's not pretty out there:

• International flights are full-to-overflowing and frequently delayed.
• Carry-on rules are tighter.
• Checked baggage is lost at an alarming rate.
• The value of the U.S. dollar is dropping dramatically in many overseas destinations.
• If you use your credit card or ATM card abroad, you'll probably get whacked with outrageous add-on fees.

Examples of problems

Here are a few examples to illustrate these points:

International carriers can best be described as late, later, latest. British Airways, that workhorse long favored by many business travelers, was recently named in a road warrior survey as the Worst Airline in the World for delayed flights. Adding to this dubious distinction, it also received hisses and boos for losing more luggage than any other international carrier (nearly 30 pieces per 1,000 international travelers).

In fact, in one widely publicized incident, British Airways misplaced so many bags that some travelers waited up to four months to get theirs back, and some never saw them again. But British Airways is not alone: TAP Portugal, Alitalia, and KLM also came in below average among European carriers.

Upgrades floating away

Upgrades to a better class of service? According to many frequent business travelers I talked to, this perk is going the way of the dodo bird. With flights lifting off the runway full-to-the-max, even platinum-level frequent flyers are finding it tougher to get automatic upgrades to business or first class.

Airports have become giant holding pens for disgruntled passengers anxiously watching departure boards to determine when (if at all) that flight will finally take them to their next destination.

As if these inconveniences aren't bad enough, it's costing more once you're there.

The U.S. dollar continues to devalue against the Euro, the British Pound, and many other international currencies, including Australia and Canada. That hotel room in London or Toronto, Frankfurt or Sydney will now cost lots more than the last time you visited. So, too, will rental cars and meals.

ATM, credit card fees up

And then there are fees. Fees to use ATMs at foreign destinations are escalating at an alarming rate. It can cost you as much as 3 percent just to tap your own money. And in some countries, you can't even use your ATM card anymore because banks there, concerned about theft of ATM card PINs, have frozen access to ATM funds.

Credit card fees are increasing for international travelers. While everyone's favorite plastic once offered good-to-best foreign exchange rates, the fees now tacked on by many bank card companies - some as high as 5 percent - can negate that benefit. And it's not always easy to know what you're actually being charged. Your best bet is to call the bank that issued the card and ask them to spell it out for you.

Rental car scams

Rental car scams in foreign destinations can ding you big-time too.

First, you can expect most foreign rental car companies to put a sizeable deposit on your credit card when you pick up the car. It's usually refundable if you bring it back in the same condition but that "hold" on your card can substantially deplete your short-term credit line.

Then there's the much-after-the-fact charge on your credit card for damage ostensibly caused by you, a scam that appears to be escalating. Dealing with a foreign rental car company in a situation like this can be difficult at best.

How much to tip?

And what do you do about tipping when you're traveling internationally? If you're like a lot of Americans, you tip the same way you do at home: 15 to 20 percent, depending on quality of service.

This "westernization" of tipping has raised expectations among service workers in foreign destinations (China is a good example), muddying the waters about what is the correct amount - or whether a tip is even expected. Bottom line, it's probably costing you more.

If all of this sounds hopelessly gloomy, take heart. There are good things happening too.

On the plus side

• United Airlines is introducing international business class lie-flat seats that recline to a full 6-foot 4-inch bed.
• Lufthansa has started testing a new in-flight entertainment system that provides individual seat-back screens in economy class on its long-haul routes.
• American Airlines plans to introduce wireless internet capabilities on some international flights beginning in 2008.
• You can rent a chic, mini-motel room called a "Yotel" at London's Gatwick and Heathrow airports. The ultra-modern windowless room costs about $50 for a four-hour block with hourly extensions available. Overnight stays cost about $110, including free internet access, workstation, on-demand movies and mood lighting.
• American Express Platinum and Centurion cardholders now have access to American Airlines' Admirals Clubs in 44 airports worldwide: Simply present the card, a government-issued ID and an AA same-day ticket, and you and two guests can enter free of charge. Amex has similar agreements with Continental, Delta and Northwest airport clubs.
• A new satellite facility for SkyTeam Alliance airline members (United, Delta, Air France/KLM and others) has opened at Charles De-Gaulle International (CDG) in Paris. The facility is linked to Terminal 2B by a speedy automated train.
• McGraw-Hill has introduced a take-with-you series of iSpeak Series Language Programs that can be downloaded to an iPod or MP3 player. Spanish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Chinese and Portuguese are currently available.
• Thanks to a new Wi-Fi service put in place by the Mairie de Paris, you can now connect to the internet in Paris for free from a high-speed wireless connection in more than 260 municipal locations: parks, town halls, libraries and museums. The service is available from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. subject to the hours that the municipal sites are open.

More changes ahead

While it might not be "pretty" out there, what's "out there" will continue to change, in many ways for the better. Business travelers are changing too - adapting, adjusting expectations and getting savvier about the demands of global travel.

So if you were thinking about abandoning your business travel life because it's just too tough, don't do it. It's still an exciting, energizing and rewarding way to do business, and (be honest, now) you'd probably miss it a lot.