Hello from Dubai! After flying Air France's 787-9 business class from Detroit to Paris, MEA's A330 business class from Paris to Beirut, and then spending a few days in Beirut, it was time to continue to Dubai. I flew Emirates' 777 business class on the…
With only about 40 hours in Saigon, we had to be fairly aggressive about how we spent our time. While we of course wanted to enjoy the city and the local cuisine, visiting some of the sites related to the wars was high on our list. Both Heather's dad…
I end up passing through the UAE quite a bit, given that it's a hub for Emirates and Etihad. On the surface it's also a great hotel market, as there are lots of reasonably priced luxury hotels. If you visit in summer you can even stay at an incredible…
I just wrapped up an incredible three days in Beirut (well, minus the airport experience), and wanted to share my impressions of the city and surrounding area. While I'm more of a fan of nature than cities, Beirut has been on my top five list of cities…
There are a lot of great credit cards out there. Personally I have 25 at the moment. While I know some people are like me in terms of how many cards they have, I know other people say "I don't want that many cards, I could never keep track of them. Give…
When I mentioned on the blog I was going to Beirut, there were two main themes in terms of reader comments: -- Beirut is awesome, you'll have a great time -- Beirut Airport is the worst thing in the world Prior to visiting I believed the first point,…
When it came time to book our hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, I didn't even look beyond the Park Hyatt Saigon. Ben had stayed there a few years ago and raved about it (though never wrote a full review), and the location seemed perfect for our purposes. Booking…
Chase has what I'd consider to be the best portfolio of business credit cards, which offer everything I look for in cards — great welcome bonuses, big spending category bonuses, and useful perks. One of my favorite things about these cards is how they…
Yesterday I shared the story of what happened to an American Airlines A321 last week that was scheduled to fly from New York to Los Angeles. Immediately after takeoff the plane banked uncontrollably 45 degrees to the left, causing the wing to strike…
As an update to this post from a couple of weeks ago, points transfers from Amex and Citi to Etihad Guest are once again working as they should. The issue with Amex was resolved last week, and the issue with Citi is now resolved as well. Below is the…
Understandably (and justifiably) there are some cards that have become extremely popular, that just about anyone who is into miles & points has in their wallet. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card come to mind (and there…
Travel providers have long had a love-hate relationship with online travel agencies like Expedia. Historically both airlines and hotels have relied on these third-party booking sites to sell their seats and rooms, yet they've also done everything they…
We frequently see loyalty programs sell points at a discount, and for many this is an opportunity to buy points at a cost that makes sense, especially for aspirational redemptions. At the moment we're seeing several loyalty programs offering great deals…
I feel like we've been talking about this trip my cousin Heather and I were going to take with our moms for months now (granted, we booked much further in advance than I typically do), so I'm excited to be finally reporting back with all the fun details.…
While most of us have hung up our snow gear for the season (if you live in the midwest, sorry!) spring is the best time to lock in deals for next year's ski season passes. I wrote about this at length last month, so if the world of multi-resort season…
I saw a headline regarding this last week, but never read the full details of this story until now. The more I read the details, the more shocked I am by what happened. This seems terrifying for those onboard. The NTSB is now investigating this, even…
With only about 40 hours in Saigon, we had to be fairly aggressive about how we spent our time. While we of course wanted to enjoy the city and the local cuisine, visiting some of the sites related to the wars was high on our list. Both Heather's dad…
When it came time to book our hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, I didn't even look beyond the Park Hyatt Saigon. Ben had stayed there a few years ago and raved about it (though never wrote a full review), and the location seemed perfect for our purposes. Booking…
I feel like we've been talking about this trip my cousin Heather and I were going to take with our moms for months now (granted, we booked much further in advance than I typically do), so I'm excited to be finally reporting back with all the fun details.…
Delta recently became the first US airline to take delivery of the Airbus A220. This plane was formerly known as the Bombardier CSeries, but ended up being rebranded as the A220 thanks to a joint venture between Bombardier and Airbus. The A220 represents…
On Monday night I spent about eight hours at the new Istanbul Airport, which just officially opened this past Saturday. I've already written a detailed review of the new airport, which is both beautiful and poorly designed. In this post I wanted to share…
Skipping ahead on my current mini-trip report series, I wanted to share my thoughts on the new Istanbul airport, which just opened over the weekend. I spent last night at the airport, as I landed at around 11PM and departed around 7AM. I was curious…
I wanted to share my experience yesterday upon landing in Beirut, since I ran into a (slight) issue I wasn't anticipating. Yesterday I landed at Beirut Airport, and immigration was a mess. There were only about two dozen people ahead of me, but there…
In mid-February Marriott's new Bonvoy loyalty program launched. As part of that we've seen a refresh of Marriott's credit card portfolio, from both American Express and Chase. Since mid-February, The Marriott Bonvoy BusinessTM American Express® Card…
Hello from Beirut! After flying from Detroit to Paris on the Air France 787-9, I connected from Paris to Beirut on a Middle East Airlines A330. This was booked as part of the same award ticket using Flying Blue Miles, given that both airlines belong…
The inevitable has happened. India's Jet Airways is ceasing operations as of today. According to Jet Airways they aren't actually going out of business, but rather are "unable to conduct flight operations," so they're viewing this as a temporary suspension.…
Alaska Mileage Plan is one of my favorite programs to buy miles from, both thanks to the frequency with which they sell miles, and what a good deal their redemptions can be. Alaska has just launched their latest bonus on purchased miles, which is only…
You wouldn't think that an airline choosing to adjust which newspapers they offer to passengers would be a big point of drama, though one paper being pulled from an airline is now making headlines. British Airways quietly made the decision to stop offering…
Mastercard has just announced some awesome new perks for those in the US with a World Mastercard or World Elite Mastercard. Effectively immediately, eligible cardmembers will automatically enjoy new benefits and experiences with merchants they use regularly.…
There are quite a few programs that often run promotions on purchased points, which can represent a great deal, especially for aspirational redemptions. Well, for the first time since Marriott Bonvoy was formed earlier this year, Marriott is offering…
LifeMiles is a useful frequent flyer program that I use all the time for Star Alliance award redemptions. LifeMiles frequently sells miles at a discount, and they're also transfer partners with Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou, and Capital One.…
The major hotel groups have been putting a lot of effort into getting you to book directly with them rather than through online travel agencies like Orbitz, Expedia, etc. That's because they have to pay a commission of 10% (or sometimes more) when you…
