Tuesday Travel Ticker: Banks tighten belts

Bloomberg reports that HSBC Holdings, Europe’s biggest bank, is telling employees to reduce travel and become more savvy in shopping around for flights and rooms in reaction to the global economic slowdown. . . . Airport IT spending rose in 2010, with airports in Asia, the Middle East and Africa leading the way, the eighth-annual SITA Airport IT Trends Survey finds. For 2012, 81% of airports expect technology budgets to remain the same or increase. . . . The family-owned Hotel Laguna, sometimes referred to as “the grand lady of Laguna Beach, has received a face-lift that includes upgrades throughout the 65-room establishment. The restaurant, renamed Claes Ovation, will feature small plates and a three-course, fixed-price menu. . . . The redesigned La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad will be unveiled Nov. 7 after a $50-million makeover to rooms and meeting areas. The property remained open during construction. . . . Tour several Ojai homes, all dressed in theme, at the 15^th annual Holiday Home Look In, Nov. 18-20. Proceeds benefit the Ojai Music Festival and music education program. For info, click here or call (805) 646-2094. . . . Pelican Hill holds a one-day autumn festival, Festa Dell’Autunno, and its annual olive oil harvest Oct. 29 for its guests. Entertainment includes wine and olive oil tasting, cooking exhibitions, street-painting and strolling musicians. . . . Travel Quote of the Day: “Olive oil ... asparagus ... if your mother wasn’t so fancy, we could shop at the gas station like normal people.” (Homer Simpson)