The Zeppelin is certainly an inspiring sight, and people here always notice and smile when it comes over.
I just read an interesting paper about the feasibility of using airships for transport of perishable cargo, for ex., pineapples & papayas from Hawaii to the mainland. With good designs (bigger, with more lifting power) the airship could fill an important niche between jet transport and merchant shipping. Mixed-use airships (cargo + passengers, or passengers + their cars) are certainly possible.
Another interesting development is that the military is looking into high-altitude airships (in the stratosphere, above the jetstream), here's the Lockheed-Martin link:
http://www.lockheedmartin.com/produc...hip/index.html