Travel
The first Black-owned hostel brand is celebrating its anniversary with its largest offering ever
Wanderstay, America’s first Black-owned hostel brand, is celebrating the one-year anniversary of its boutique hotel. Founder Deidre Mathis is celebrating by announcing her biggest offering in order that recent customers can check out the space.
Curious travelers will reach Houston stay in one among Wanderstay’s themed rooms, inspiring with music, sports and even safari. Tucked away within the cultural district of the East End, Mathis intentionally designed this space to bring fun and excitement back to luxury adult accommodation.
Guests can enjoy this Black-owned oasis for over 50% off the regular rate, supplying you with a 2-night stay for just $149 plus tax. Although the possibility to get this deal ends on April 15, buyers have one yr to benefit from this never-to-be-repeated offer and participate within the Wanderstay. More information, including the discount code, may be found on Wanderstay’s social media accounts.
To highlight this recent offer, BLACK ENTERPRISES spoke with Mathis in a fast Q&A session about pursuing her wildest dreams, securing funding, and the hostel community.
How to get from the hostel to the hotel? It looks as if a very different ball game.
We opened the hostel in 2018. I made history because the first black woman to run and own a hostel within the US, but I already knew then that I desired to expand my hotel brand. As I got older, other travelers did it too and also you realize that hostels are mainly great while you’re younger. When I used to be older, I wanted something more upscale that would not break the bank. So I created a hotel that met what my friends and I were now searching for.
Explain your purpose and mission at Wanderstay. Many people hear the word “hostel” and have some negative associations in mind. How do you combat and dismantle the narrative? What could make a hostel feel prefer it’s five-star?
When we first opened, people asked, “Why a hostel and why Houston?” I replied, “Why not?” Honestly, there was no hostel option. I take a look at the statistics; There are plenty of tourists and events in Houston, but there are not any options for this kind of accommodation. When it involves breaking the stereotype, I didn’t need to do much because our target market, hostelers, were searching for us. But I still love introducing it to Black and brown individuals who would otherwise never give it some thought.
How has this experience before the COVID-19 pandemic shaped your enterprise journey?
We opened at a really special moment. Before the pandemic broke out, we had only been in business for a yr and a half. We just needed to turn around hard and we did it in a short time. We are positioned two miles from the medical center so we could accommodate nurses and family visitors. We all the time tell people who when the going gets tough, take into consideration how you may change to save lots of your enterprise. We maintain our brand standards of cleanliness and community, and folks proceed to make use of us.
Can you explain your view on raising equity funding for this enterprise, especially when this avenue for Black women entrepreneurs is in danger??
So I fully funded each of my projects with U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, which is a unicorn, right? First of all, as within the case of the hostel, many start-ups use SBA loans, including people who open businesses in specific, area of interest industries. I used to be in the suitable place at the suitable time. When I moved to Houston, I began networking and met as many individuals as I could.
In 2016, I entered as many pitching competitions as I could. I did about 18 – and won all of them. People then began to take notice. So after I began searching for money for my business, I had local banks willing to support me. When I had my second location, I picked up the phone and said, “Hey, I’m ready to grow,” and the banks said, “OK, let’s do it.” So I tell people, if you happen to want an SBA loan, be energetic in your city and tell people what you do.
What experiences have you ever delivered to your guests? How do you would like to influence and shape the best way Black people travel?
I really like how most days I sit at my desk and talk over with my guests. They are so pleased with me and completely satisfied after they discover we’re Black owned. When you provide good customer support, skin color doesn’t matter, but guests know that you just appear like them they usually’re much more excited to share your story. We have also implemented many security measures to make sure this safety.
We are a hotel, but what we actually offer is a spot for the community.
What was the most important obstacle you overcame to realize this dream? Has it ever felt unattainable? What do you’ve gotten to say to other Black women who’ve lofty dreams?
Sometimes I believe: wow, not only did I even have this dream, but I made it come true. Not once, but twice… but I need people to realize it wasn’t easy. In 2014 I made a decision to open it and toiled for 4 and a half years. I didn’t earn or receive any rewards. But I made business plans, checked my funds and made contacts. Four years of achieving this goal gave me every part I needed when it got here time to finally open.
You bring the world to you with Wanderstay. What do you wish them to go away with?
We have so many things in common on this world, but I believe all of us feel alone and disconnected. When people can look me in the attention and talk over with me, they get something out of it. You do not get this in traditional hotels. I need people to go away Wanderstay feeling like they’ve just left a family or friend behind and might’t wait to see them again.
Travel
Airlines will now be required to provide automatic cash refunds for canceled and delayed flights
The Biden administration issued final rules Wednesday that require airlines to robotically pay cash refunds for things like delayed flights and higher disclose baggage or cancellation fees.
The Department of Transport said airlines would be required to provide automatic cash refunds inside days for canceled flights and “significant” delays.
Under current regulations, airlines determine how long a delay must last before refunds are triggered. The administration removes this leeway by defining a major delay as lasting a minimum of three hours for domestic flights and six hours for international flights.
Airlines will still be able to offer one other flight or travel credit as an alternative, but consumers will be able to decline the offer.
This rule will also apply to refunds for checked baggage if the bags is just not delivered inside 12 hours for domestic flights or 15-30 hours for international flights. It will also apply to seat selection or web connection fees if the airline doesn’t provide the service.
Complaints about refunds have skyrocketed in the course of the Covid-19 pandemic as airlines canceled flights, and even after they didn’t, many individuals didn’t feel protected sharing a plane cabin with other passengers.
Airlines for America, a trade group for large U.S. carriers, noted that the variety of refund complaints filed with the Department of Transportation has dropped sharply since mid-2020. A spokesman for the group said the airlines “offer a range of options – including fully refundable fares – to make air travel more accessible and help customers choose the tickets that best suit their needs.”
The group said the 11 largest U.S. airlines returned $43 billion to customers between 2020 and 2023.
The Department of Transportation has issued a separate rule requiring airlines and ticketing agents to disclose upfront fees for checked and carry-on baggage, and for cancellations or changes to reservations. On airline web sites, fees must be visible the primary time you see the worth and flight schedule.
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The rule will also oblige airlines to inform passengers that they’ve a guaranteed seat for which they do not need to pay extra, even though it doesn’t prohibit airlines from charging fees for choosing certain seats. Many airlines now charge extra for certain seats, including seats in exit rows and near the front of the cabin.
The agency said the rule would save consumers greater than $500 million a 12 months.
Airlines for America said its members “offer consumers transparency and choice” from the primary search.
The recent rules will apply for the following two years. They are a part of a broad administration attack on what President Joe Biden calls “junk fees.” Last week, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced that his department would allow state officials in 15 states to help implement federal airline consumer protection laws.
Travel
Retired black judge files complaint against American Airlines
Pamela Hill-Veal, a black woman from Chicago, filed a complaint against American Airlines alleging racial discrimination by a flight attendant. Hill-Veal, who was flying top quality, reported that she was harassed by a flight attendant on February 10 after using the plane’s first-class bathroom.
The complaint, which was sent to American Airlines and received by , detailed this Hill-Veal and her family were flying top quality from Chicago to Phoenix. As she was returning to her seat from the toilet, she was stopped by an anonymous stewardess. “As I was returning to my seat, the flight attendant stopped me and told me that ‘I slammed the toilet door and I shouldn’t do that again because the passengers were sleeping on the plane,'” Hill-Veal said in an interview with . She said she never slammed any doors, but when she tried to make use of the restroom again in top quality, the identical flight attendant stopped her.
Hill-Veal, a retired Illinois district court judge, said American Airlines contacted her to learn more about what happened to her.
The airline said: “We strive to ensure that every customer has a positive travel experience and we take any allegations of discrimination very seriously.”
Hill-Veal recalled the moment the flight attendant began admonishing her.
“He started berating me, pointing his finger at my face and saying, ‘I told you not to slam the door… so from now on you have to use the toilet at the end of the plane,’ pointing in the direction of the toilet on the coach.”
She believes the issue was racially motivated because she saw other white people doing the identical and never being treated the identical way as she was.
As she was leaving, a rude flight attendant followed her to her seat and physically tried to remove her.
In the complaint, Hill-Veal stated that a flight attendant told her she could be arrested because “he didn’t like the way (she) was talking to him” and accused Hill-Veal of hitting him.
“It was a complete fabrication because I told him I never hit him,” she insisted.
Hill-Veal stated that the incident affected her. She loses sleep and feels humiliated by what happened.
“I still don’t feel comfortable flying because I don’t know what they’re going to say about me doing it… trying to hide what they did at that particular time,” Hill-Veal said.
Travel
Climate change threatens the Gullah Geechee community and culture
The Gullah Geechee individuals are descended from enslaved individuals who lived on the southeastern offshore islands, stretching from southern North Carolina to northern Florida. Isolation from land allowed the Gullah Geechee people preserving many West African traditions, including language, food, art and spiritual practices.
Marquetta “Queen Quet” Goodwine is a historian, environmental justice advocate, and leader Gullah Geechee Nation. In 2019, Queen Quet testified before Congress that climate change threatens the preservation of Gullah Geechee traditions, which include lucrative fishing, crabbing and farming. She asked members of Congress to offer funding to construct infrastructure to guard shorelines from erosion.
“Every part of what we do is to ensure our survival as native Gullah Geechees and the survival of our traditions,” said Queen Quet NBC News.
The owner is Tia Clark Casual crabbing with Tia in Charleston, South Carolina. She said higher temperatures have resulted in the lack of crab habitat. According to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, the state recorded a record low level variety of blue crabs in 2023
“It terrifies me to think that our resources are gone because of climate change,” Clark saidNBC News.
In 2023, the Biden administration committed $15.5 million to assist protect greater than 41 million acres of lands and waters in the Gullah Geechee Heritage Corridor.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is proud to support projects that support diverse and underrepresented populations most impacted by climate change.” – Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo – he said at a press conference.
NOAA will spend $536,000 to rent latest staff to assist construct relationships between restoration organizations and the Gullah Geechee Association. These federal programs will help fight climate change, which is able to help protect and preserve the wealthy history and culture of the Gullah Geechee community.
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