Earlier this week I was pointed to a Tweet calling out the vast amount of "Unclaimed Property" that has been turned over to state treasuries for one reason or another. Apparently this can include everything from undeposited paychecks and other uncashed…
The situation is changing by the hour, and while there will be worldwide social and economic fallout from this pandemic, the impacts on the travel industry are far-reaching. If you're looking for information and updates on the virus itself, please check…
It's been a complicated few weeks for air travel, to put it mildly, and we're hearing a lot of stories from people who are in the middle of a trip, or otherwise trying to get home, and are being stymied by the constantly changing flight schedules and…
As the situation continues to unfold, we are seeing a deluge of information across the internet -- with much of the good and practical content being drowned out in the noise. At the same time, many people seem to not understand the gravity of the situation,…
This is just a reminder that the next FTU event will take place this weekend, in Washington D.C. -- if you don't have tickets to either the FTU, or the adjacent Travel & Adventure Show, now's a great time! The Frequent Traveler University events provide…
One of the saddest parts of my day (other than explaining to people why their million bank or cash-back style points won't get them to Asia in first class), is when I read a message from someone who has just had all their miles expire. I also get several…
We've been receiving dozens of messages a day from readers, clients, and our parents (hi Mom!) asking how the COVID-19 coronavirus is impacting travel. People are understandably worried, and the frenetic news cycle is certainly ratcheting tension over…
Well this has been a fun few weeks. For reasons we still don't understand (but which don't seem to have been due to anything we did), our MailChimp account was shut down, making it impossible to send out our daily/weekly newsletters. After a few false…
Gosh we have had incredible weather this week! I'm sure we'd be having a grand time regardless, but the literally picture-perfect autumn glow making everything golden and cozy sure doesn't hurt. Other than exclaiming in delight at the landscape as we…
We've invented a new game on this road trip, having exhausted our previous car-ride favorite of Airport Code Jumble, and while I don't have a catchy name quite yet, the theme is "Name Hotels That Were Literally The Worst." I'm not quite admitting to…
To start off our second full day in Romania, we headed out to the countryside of Transylvania, and the tiny hamlet of Veseud. I can't remember where I first heard of these Saturday brunches, but I was instantly enamored by the idea. The brunch moves…
I really have to thank you guys for all your insights into Romania as we were planning this trip. I ultimately chose our itinerary by pasting all your suggestions on hotels and activities into a geographically-grouped table, chunked things out by how…
One of the trickiest things about redeeming miles is accurately searching award space. You have to know where to search for it, the foibles of each search engine, and that's before you even get into the thick of what partners each airline has and the…
I can't believe I forgot to write about this earlier. Well, I can, as it's been a complicated summer here, and this is one of those things each year where I know I'm going, pretty much everyone I know seems to be going, and at some level I think I just…
This won't apply to everyone, but just in case it's relevant to you I wanted to share a quick note of caution regarding making multiple transfers from American Express Membership Rewards (at least the US program) to Air Canada Aeroplan in a single day.…
I had to be in New York for meetings earlier this summer, and decided to take the opportunity to check out some of the new World of Hyatt properties in the city, starting with The Beekman, a Thompson Hotel. The Beekman is a Category 6 property for World…
Once upon a time, before the days of revenue-based mileage earning and other lifestyle complications, Ben and I used to fly together a lot. Granted, these were almost always miserable-sounding mileage run itineraries where we'd spend two weeks going…
Well, this doesn't look good. For the past week or so we've been hearing about issues with Marriott Bonvoy points getting "stuck" when members have initiated transfers to Lufthansa Miles&More. This isn't entirely unusual, as post-merger many Marriott…
We get a lot of questions about what blogging is like, and even more questions about writing trip reports. Having just wrapped up an extremely lengthy series on my trip to Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, the process is pretty fresh in my mind, so I thought…
This will be the final segment of my trip report on Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, which feels bittersweet. This has been a very long series (and was a long trip to start with), so it's taken a ridiculous amount of time to put together, but I've so enjoyed…
There are places you travel to with a certain vision of what the experience will be like -- sitting streetside in a Parisian cafe while an accordion plays; inhaling scents of saffron and sumac in a crowded Turkish spice market; being enveloped in the…
