Airports can be confusing, particularly in the case of terminals designed for the jet era that haven't adapted as well to modern aviation. The terminal shift at Los Angeles International Airport earlier a few years ago has inspired improved wayfinding,…
My wife and I used to do a lot of premium cabin trips but now that we are a family of four, we mostly fly economy. We just don't see the point of spending more miles (or worse, money) to fly up-front. When you've got two preschoolers in tow, you're not…
We've written in the past about the huge value to be had with Virtuoso, which typically requires booking through a qualifying travel advisor. What many people don't realize is that you can actually make Virtuoso bookings online as well, so in this post…
Nowadays you have people earning points for just about everything. This ranges from credit card rewards to points for flights and hotel stays, to earning points through all kinds of other third party transactions, from shopping online to buying flowers.…
Chase issues some of the best rewards credit cards out there, though one of the major restrictions associated with being approved for many of their cards is the "5/24 rule." In this post I wanted to provide an update on a previous version of the post…
The Companion Pass is probably the best way to get discounts on Southwest Airlines, as you're effectively getting 2-for-1 travel for as long as you have the pass. And before anyone makes a snarky comment about no one at OMAAT flying WN, the last time…
Folks, I want to offer my unequivocal apologies for the way this was presented, and thus how it came across. My intention was not to make this sound as though I believed every detail of the story -- it's obviously outlandish (at best), but also came…
I do what I can to write about the best deals for earning and redeeming miles. In this post I wanted to share what I consider to be eight of the most useful sweet-spot award redemptions right now. While there are lots of great redemption values out there,…
Ah, tax season. As many Americans are starting to finalize their tax returns, questions about earning points for making those payments always come up. I pay all my estimated quarterly and annual taxes by credit card, so figured it would be helpful to…
President Trump has taken to Twitter this morning to give Boeing some advice for what they should do with the 737 MAX, given the current fiasco (along with Tweets about immigration, Mueller, etc.): "What do I know about branding, maybe nothing (but I…
The topic of tipping hotel housekeeping is a controversial one. This is something that has been discussed to great lengths over the years, and people seem pretty evenly split as to what the right thing to do is. So, is it appropriate to tip hotel housekeeping…
Not a day goes by when we don't get a message from someone frustrated because they tried to use their miles for a "free" flight, and were stymied by hundreds of dollars in taxes and fees. While some airports and countries do have higher fees, the bulk…
It's interesting to observe how different airlines approach boarding. Not only are there cultural differences across the globe (just observe boarding in the US vs. Japan), but even within regions some airlines have vastly different boarding procedures…
Ugh! For the first time ever, I almost wish the points had been stolen instead! As is probably the case for many of you, I manage the miles and points for everyone in my household. I tell my family members which credit cards to get, which credit cards…
Perhaps the single most impressively marketed travel rewards credit card is the Capital One Venture Card. We've all seen the ads, which have some big name stars in them. Like Alec Baldwin. Which brings me to a question that reader Stav9678 asked in the…
I'm curious what you guys make of this situation. Yesterday I flew Turkish Airlines from Istanbul to New York. More on the flight as such in another post, but something strange happened upon landing. I'm not sure where this falls on the scale of "if…
We get messages every day from folks asking for more details about how Ben got started as a travel blogger, or from people who have already started some kind of blog or content site and have questions for me about the practical details of everything…
This morning an Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX 8 crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa, while enroute to Nairobi. This is incredibly tragic, as nearly 160 lives were lost. This has raised a lot of questions, given that this is the second Boeing…
Reader David asked an interesting question in the Ask Lucky forum: "Quick question. I boarded a Royal Maroc flight from Doha to Casablanca and at the gate the lady asked me if I had been consuming alcohol. I had been but said no and continued on to board…
A couple of days ago Southwest Airlines generated a lot of buzz when they started selling flights to Hawaii. The airline published fares of just $49 one-way, including two checked bags, which is an incredibly good deal. The airline will be operating…
In an update that will surprise absolutely no one (unless you work for Marriott, in which case I imagine every day lately is a fresh wave of surprise and horror), Bonvoy is not displaying the correct prices for Points Advance reservations made prior…
