Feel like heading off into the sunset and not looking back? Virgin America is offering a free one-way economy cabin flight when you apply for its soon-to-debut Virgin America Visa Signature rewards card by Nov. 30, 2008.

This is the first airline credit card offer I’ve mentioned on this blog - ever. I almost never write about them. Most miles-earning credit card offers entail large numbers of bonus points travelers may or may not ever be able to actually use and free “companion ticket” offers that have a boatload of restrictions and require you to travel with another person on the same itinerary, which can be unrealistic for many travelers.

The Virgin America offer stands out because it’s simple, straightforward and actually offers applicants something they can use - and, in fact, have to use before May 20, 2009. With no blackout dates, the free flight really only poses one major issue - and that’s getting back where you started. But we think most travelers are smart enough to figure that one out on their own….

Emirates Airline is coming to Hollywood. To celebrate its new direct route between Los Angeles and Dubai, the carrier is producing a short film, The Exposure of Tom King, and holding open auditions for the starring roles. But instead of a plane ticket to Los Angeles, a web cam is all you need to audition. Sure, auditioning via web cam is a bit of a kooky idea - but, wait, it gets weirder. The entire movie has already been shot - only without actors.

That’s where you and your web cam come in. Emirates has tapped Hollywood casting director Avy Kaufman (The Sixth Sense, Thomas Crown Affair, Brokeback Mountain, etc.) to choose the winning actors and place them into the main roles.

Auditions are open via the film’s web site through Oct. 26, the day the new Emirates route officially launches. To get in on the lights-camera-action, check out the actor-less movie trailer, head to the web site, where a list of characters and their crucial biographical information awaits. Choose a character, then start practicing your lines. When you’re ready, fire up the ‘cam and get into character. If your performance is good enough to land you in the real deal, then you’ll be featured in the short film when it premieres on Nov. 7, 2008.

Wanna size up the competition? You can view the auditions via the site.

Now here’s a bailout plan anyone can get behind: Vail Resorts’ Baggage Bailout, offered to skiers and snowboarders staying at Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone or Heavenly this winter. Guests who book a stay of four or more days at one of these resorts by Dec. 1, 2008, will receive a $50 credit for adults or a $25 credit per child to offset the cost of airline checked baggage fees.

Since skiers and snowboarders who tote their own gear to the mountain are required to check sports equipment when they fly, they are sitting ducks for extra airline fees - and the fees can really add up if you’re traveling with several companions.

There are a few extra ifs, ands or buts - including a requirement that you book directly through Vail Resorts Reservations (866-949-2573) and purchase four days of lift tickets along with your lodging. But the upside is that the deal is available regardless of the number of bags you bring or the airline you fly - if you get to the mountain without paying airline fees, you still get the credit.

With in-flight wireless Internet come the questions of public space and private content. In a not-at-all surprising move, American Airlines announced this week that it will take steps to filter out adult content accessible via the Gogo In-flight Internet service that provides wi-fi access on its planes. I imagine most, if not all, airlines will take similar measures when their in-flight Internet services become available in the coming months.

Okay, I’ll admit it. I’m intrigued by the TravelRest. I usually scoff at inflatable travel pillows. I mean: a) who wants to go to the trouble of inflating and deflating a pillow and b) their inflated nature inherently cancels out the cushioned quality that I require to fall asleep.

That said, I did just spend several hours yesterday battling a travel pillow that kept slip-sliding everywhere as I tried to sleep sitting in the fully upright position. In the haze of semi-sleep, I just wanted that sucker to stay put so I could…please and thank you…get some friggin’ sleep.

The TravelRest purports to fix this problem by attaching its top end to your seat via a looped cord (which might have the potential to annoy the person sitting behind you, but the company says it is compatible with most tray table configs) and its bottom end to your seat belt. Take that, gravity! No more unwanted pillow slippage.

Another benefit of the TravelRest? It’s shape and inflatable construction make it the perfect implement for  surprise, mid-flight head bopping attacks on your seatmate (these are usually best reserved for younger siblings and subordinate coworkers).

You know you were looking for a piece of really arcane travel advice today. Luckily, I have it for you, thanks to a discovery made mere hours ago as I was boarding a Virgin America flight from JFK to San Francisco International airport.

You know the row before the exit row? You know how it’s pretty much universal knowledge that one should avoid booking seats in the row right in front of the exit row whenever possible, because these seats lack one of the only remaining free in-flight amenities left to travelers today, i.e. the perk of reclining when and to what degree one chooses? Yes, of course you know that.

But did you know that you might accidentally end up in this reclining-deprived row when you choose seats two rows in front of the exit row? Oh yes. It can happen. When I boarded my flight today, I found a family occupying the row containing my assigned seat. They apologized - the airline had moved them up a row. My row was now their row, their row was now mine. The reason? Infants are not allowed in seats in the rows flanking the exit rows. It was a rule I’d never heard, but one I certainly wasn’t going to cause a ruckus over. Unexpectedly losing one’s ability to recline is a small inconvenience - or at least, it’s one I was willing to take in stride, especially since it involves parents with small children - ’cause flying with infants ain’t easy.

That said, I won’t be choosing seats within two rows of the exit row anymore on cross-country flights. Being able to recline ever-so-slightly is a key part of an air travel pillow + headphones + sleep strategy I’ve spent the last few years cultivating, and I am not about to start from scratch, nor am I going to return to the days of spaghetti-neck economy cabin naps. No thanks.

Do you have any really obscure travel tips to share? Tell us about them in the comments section.

You know you’re in the middle of an election year when even your regional airport is getting caught up in the political frenzy. But that’s what’s happening at Indiana’s South Bend Regional Airport. So the story goes, some professors from the University of Notre Dame complained to airport officials after finding Fox News being aired on terminal televisions. Says one of the petitioning professors, “Fox tends to be the right-wing Republican voice,” she says. “So when I go to the airport, I’m not interested in having that blasted at me. The airport is a public space.”

In response, airport administrators are surveying passengers to determine their news-watching preferences. Of the 400 responses received thus far, officials at the airport say 75 percent of the respondents said they preferred news content to non-news programming like weather, sports or children’s shows. As for which news source passengers prefer, 132 people say they prefer CNN, while 113 cast their vote for Fox, 58 chose MSNBC and a mere four respondents said they’d rather get their news from CSPAN.

Which news organization will win out in the end? Stay tuned….

Heading from New York to Paris or Amsterdam this fall? OpenSkies is offering discounted fares for roundtrip travel in its PREM+ cabin, which offers perks like meals, in-seat entertainment systems, power outlets, leather seats and 52″ of legroom.

Round trip fares for travel from New York-JFK to Paris are $1198, while round trip travel between New York-JFK and Amsterdam can be had for $998. The airline, a subsidiary of British Airways, launches its New York to Amsterdam service this month and is offering the special fares through Oct. 15 to the first 1,000 customers purchasing tickets on each route. I checked today, and there are still discounted fares left.

If you’re mystified by the way different airlines price their tickets and levy fees for basic services, you’re not alone. Airline fare pricing structures are complicated and vary from airline to airline, as do the fees carriers charge for basic services and extra perks, from food to headsets.

The AP’s David Koenig breaks down the different pricing strategies and practices in use at different carriers in a story out today about American Airlines and its consideration of turning to a la carte fares in the future. While the news that one airline may shift its pricing isn’t all that riveting in and of itself, the story is worth reading for its straightforward explanation of why tickets cost wildly different amounts from airline to airline and seat to seat. It also offers a good overview of which airlines use which methods. Air Canada, for example, has already embraced the a la carte pricing model, which allows passengers to choose different fares based on the level of service and in-flight amenities they desire.

As the story points out, some passengers may feel that a la carte pricing is a nickle-and-diming strategy on the airlines’ part. While it is true that it can be annoying to have to pay fees at every turn, I’d much rather airlines break the pricing down for me into fees and transparent fare levels so I have the freedom to choose where and when I want to spend the extra cash, and when I’d rather take matters into my own hands in order to save by packing light, bringing my own food, etc.

With all the talk of the shaky economy, bankrupt carriers, reduced flight schedules, higher fees and over-crowded cabins, it’s easy to miss the the good things happening in air travel right now. Several airlines have actually announced important new routes and expanded service lately that should make travel easier - and, we hope, a little cheaper - for frequent visitors to the cities in question.

New routes worth noting:

1. Southwest Airlines plans to begin flights to and from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in March 2009. Service will begin with between 8 and 10 daily flights to Chicago Midway.

2. AirTrain Airways announced this week that it will add flights between Cancun and both Baltimore/Washington International Airport and Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport beginning March 7 and Feb 25, 2009, respectively.

3. Delta resumed flights from Los Angeles to Kauai and the Big Island, as well as from Atlanta to Honolulu this week.

4. Hawaiian Airlines announced yesterday that it will add 110 interisland flights to its existing schedule by the end of 2008. The flights will increase the number of daily options during peak morning and afternoon travel times between Honolulu and Lihue (Kauai), Kahului (Maui), Kona (Big Island) and Hilo (Big Island).