I sort of feel like I'm explaining life on earth to a martian here... My dad is flying Southwest tomorrow for the first time. There are a few things to understand about my dad, and about my relationship with him. First of all, my dad isn't very good…
One of the awesome features of several American Express cards is the annual airline fee credits they offer, which range in value from $100 to $250. Well, it looks like for a lot of people this benefit has just gotten less valuable. Which Amex cards offer…
Alaska Airlines 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 Airlines has just launched their latest promotion on purchased…
As I wrote about earlier, I just went through the process of renewing my passport. Now that I have a new passport, I realized that there's one important thing that I have to do. As anyone who travels frequently internationally knows, Global Entry is…
When talking about mid-range credit cards that earn transferrable points, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is probably the first card that comes to mind for many. The card offers a big sign-up bonus, bonus categories, and great protection. However,…
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about how talks broke down between British Airways management and their pilots union over a new contract. British Airways is experiencing record profitability at the moment, and the pilots want their share of that. They…
I just went through the process of renewing my US passport. Ford's passport was due to expire in August, and mine in December, so we figured we might as well both renew them at once. Over the weekend I got my new passport in the mail. Much to my surprise,…
The past few years we've seen airlines investing significantly in their business class products. Not only do more airlines offer dine on demand onboard, but many airlines also offer pre-flight dining. This gives passengers the flexibility to eat what…
I've always kind of wanted to be a flight attendant, but just for a hot minute. Not for 46 years, as seems to be the norm in the US. There is something that seems kind of fun about doing the hand motions pointing out where the exits are, having the power…
I'd kind of like to spend a night in the LSU locker room, and not in a weird way (or maybe this is actually the weird way to want to spend a night in a locker room?)... LSU Football has shared on Twitter pictures of their locker room, and frankly they…
Online shopping portals can be a great way to pick up additional miles & points for purchases you’d make anyway. Just for following a specific link you can earn bonus points in addition to the ones you’d earn anyway for credit card spending. Whenever…
Online shopping portals can be a great way to pick up additional miles & points for purchases you’d make anyway. Just for following a specific link you can earn bonus points in addition to the ones you’d earn for credit card spend. The number of bonus…
Many of us go to great lengths to maximize our credit card strategy. For example, I have over two dozen credit cards -- I have some cards for the perks, while I have other cards for the bonuses they offer when I spend money on them. While I know many…
I've written before about how my "urge" to get on a plane has lessened lately. My sweet dog and his abandonment issues have a lot to do with it, as it's heartbreaking to leave him, but I've also found my interests have changed somewhat. I still love…
Our quick trip to Santiago presented us with a little bit of a quandary: with only one full day to see the city, but two nights at our disposal, our goal was to maximize time, tourism value, and points all in one shot. This was the only opportunity to…
I had an interesting experience involving contacting customer relations at American recently, which I figured I'd share. First let me provide a bit of background. I get emails constantly from readers who share with me how unsatisfied they are with airline…
Our quick trip to Santiago presented us with a little bit of a quandary: with only one full day to see the city, but two nights at our disposal, our goal was to maximize time, tourism value, and points all in one shot. This was the only opportunity to…
Welcome to my next trip report, covering travel in ANA first class to Japan using an incredible mileage deal, as well as stays at several hotels that I've been wanting to stay at for a while. Ford had never been to Japan before (other than connecting…
Every winter, my husband and I succumb to the vitamin D deficiency that plagues New England, and use our miles to get as far away from winter as possible. Our trip has to meet one of two criteria: As far south in the Southern Hemisphere as possible (maximum…
This past week I finally had the chance to stay at the TWA Hotel JFK. I don't think I've ever been this excited about staying at an airport hotel... or even about staying at any hotel, for that matter. Not only is this hotel an aviation geek's dream,…
My layover in Madrid was only about two hours. Madrid is a deceivingly massive airport, and a great place to connect if you're looking to meet your daily quota for steps in one layover. To be honest I actually have no clue what gate we arrived at, though…
I got to Gatwick Airport at around 7:30AM, plenty early for my 9:55AM flight to Madrid. My flight on Air Europa was departing from Gatwick's South Terminal. The first stop at the airport was The Grain Store, which is the Priority Pass restaurant at the…
A couple of days ago I wrote about an incident that occurred at Lagos Airport, where a man climbed onto the wing of a plane just shortly before it was due to take off. The man allegedly brought a carry-on, which he decided to store in the engine, and…
I don't think there's a single card that has changed the premium credit card landscape like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card did back when it was introduced in the summer of 2016. For a long time $450+ annual fee cards were thought of as being only for…
I'm spending my last full week in the US before taking a big international trip. I'm not actually sure of the exact details of that trip just yet, though I hope it will include Air Peace, Air Tanzania, Air Mauritius, and more. ;) On the points & travel…
We'll have to see how this unfolds, but it certainly sounds like it could be bad news. British Airways has canceled all flights to Cairo for the next week as a security precaution. A Cairo Airport spokesperson has said that they haven't been notified…
Welcome to my next trip report, covering travel in ANA first class to Japan using an incredible mileage deal, as well as stays at several hotels that I've been wanting to stay at for a while. Ford had never been to Japan before (other than connecting…
Another airline has just announced a price increase for lounge memberships. It has just been announced that the cost of Alaska Lounge memberships is increasing as of August 30, 2019. This comes just days after Alaska opened their new flagship lounge…
It used to be that you'd only earn one point per dollar spent on credit cards. Then we saw some cards introduce up to 1.5x points per dollar spent. Then a card was introduced in 2017 that offered a full 2x transferable points per dollar spent all with…
Every winter, my husband and I succumb to the vitamin D deficiency that plagues New England, and use our miles to get as far away from winter as possible. Our trip has to meet one of two criteria: As far south in the Southern Hemisphere as possible (maximum…
Yesterday I wrote about how President Trump had a meeting with several airline CEOs, including those from American Airlines, United Airlines, and even Qatar Airways. One of the topics of conversation was subsidies for Gulf carriers, which the US airlines…
In early June American and Qantas received conditional approval for their transpacific joint venture, which they've been trying to get for years. On Friday the two airlines received final approval from the US Department of Transportation for this. Let's…
