Friday Travel Ticker: United computers down again

A computer outage at United Airlines delayed thousands of travelers on Thursday. The two-hour outage held up morning flights from Los Angeles to London. It was United’s third major computer mishap this year, Associated Press says . . . .

More than 1.792 million passengers will pass through LAX during the Thanksgiving holiday period, a modest increase of 0.3% over last year. If you need help navigating the busy airport, keep an eye open for red-vested volunteers, who will be there to answer questions . . . . LAX is second to only Chicago’s O’Hare for Thanksgiving traffic, the online travel agency Orbitz Worldwide reports . . . .

L.A. Tourism has become the first U.S. convention and visitors bureau to hit 1 million Facebook fans, according to a commissioned study conducted by Sparkloft Media. The organization’s page, facebook.com/LosAngelesFan, was launched in May 2009 and is a resource on Los Angeles events, attractions and hotels . . . .

The Yellowstone Assn. Institute is combining yoga and winter recreation twice this winter. The Yoga and Ski Weekend Retreat will be offered: Jan. 18-20 and Feb. 16-18 . . . .

Touting its upcoming parade and holiday season, New York tourism experts are saying only four of the city’s 250 hotels remain closed after the storm. The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting will be held Nov. 28 . . . .

Mammoth Mountain kicked off the season last weekend with well over a foot of fresh powder. More is expected this weekend . . . . Two feet of new snow and lots of early openings have Lake Tahoe optimistic about the ski season as well. “It’s going to be a white Thanksgiving,” says Andy Chapman of the North Lake Tahoe Chamber/CVB/Resort Assn. . . . In British Columbia, Whistler Mountain will open Saturday, five days ahead of the original opening date . . . . . . . . How determined is Colorado to entice skiers after last year’s disappointing snows? The Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa at Beaver Creek Mountain is allowing people to cancel reservations for stays before mid-December without penalty if Beaver Creek reports a base of less than 19 inches on the day before arrival . . . .

Travel quote of the day: “Thanksgiving dinners take 18 hours to prepare. They are consumed in 12 minutes. Halftimes take 12 minutes. This is not coincidence.” (Erma Bombeck)

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chris.erskine@latimes.com