No visit from Terminix, but they sent a bill anyway

from Elliott http://elliott.org/problem-solved/visit-terminix-sent-bill-anyway/

A Card With 8% Return at Grocery Stores and Beyond, and Getting Money Back from Paypal When They Shut You Down

News and notes from around the interweb: Heartwarming: United’s fantasy flight to the North Pole for sick kids. Frequent Miler ‘may’ have had his account frozen by Paypal for buying Paypal My Cash cards and cashing them out. Here’s how he got his money back. Per the South African Airways Voyager newsletter, the US Airways-South […]

The post A Card With 8% Return at Grocery Stores and Beyond, and Getting Money Back from Paypal When They Shut You Down appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/12/17/card-8-return-grocery-stores-beyond-getting-money-back-paypal-shut/

Machine Learning: Improving In-Flight Wi-Fi and Streaming From Virgin America, JetBlue and More

These services let you use your own mobile devices to either stream free content like TV, music or games, or to rent movies and TV without having to pay for a Wi-Fi plan.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/418e620d/sc/28/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A140C120C180Ctechnology0Cpersonaltech0Cimproving0Ein0Eflight0Ewi0Efi0Eand0Estreaming0Efrom0Evirgin0Eamerica0Ejetblue0Eand0Emore0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

EVA Air To Operate Hello Kitty Flights To Houston

As I wrote about last week, EVA Air will be expanding their service to North America next summer, as they'll be launching 4x weekly service between Taipei and Houston as of June 2015. This expansion is a no brainer, not just because Houston is a huge oil city, but also because it's United's biggest hub, so there's lots of potential for connecting traffic, now that EVA Air is in the Star Alliance.

So if you were excited about the new route to begin with, take a deep breath and make sure you're sitting down. As it turns out, this new EVA Air flight to Houston will be operated by a Hello Kitty 777-300ER. The most exciting part? They're not even using an existing Hello Kitty 777-300ER (of which there's only one), but rather they're taking delivery of an all new Hello Kitty 777-300ER!!!

Via USA Today:

The post EVA Air To Operate Hello Kitty Flights To Houston appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/12/17/eva-air-to-operate-hello-kitty-flights-to-houston/

Starwood’s Free Internet Domino May Tip the Lodging Industry to Free Worldwide Internet for Everyone

Effective February 2, Starwood will offer complimentary internet at all hotels to all members as long as reservations are made through an SPG channel. Non-status members are only entitled to throttled speeds, where applicable. Golds, who can already choose internet as an amenity option, will get high speed internet and can still select a points […]

The post Starwood’s Free Internet Domino May Tip the Lodging Industry to Free Worldwide Internet for Everyone appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/12/17/starwoods-free-internet-domino-may-tip-lodging-industry-free-worldwide-internet-everyone/

First Person: For a City Dweller, Shock Immersion Into Small-Town Life

The neighborly vibe of a Long Island village rubbed off on a New Yorker, who cherished his relative anonymity of apartment living.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/418dc700/sc/10/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A140C120C180Cstyle0Cfor0Ea0Ecity0Edweller0Eshock0Eimmersion0Einto0Esmall0Etown0Elife0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Reader Request: Longing for those VIP Lounges

Last week, FTG reader Ray sent us a Reader Request: “With the start of the new year, I am considering signing up for a credit card or membership that will give me airport lounge access. I travel a lot and have international responsibilities in 2015. Ideally, I wouldn’t be restricted to one airline, and would […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2014/12/reader-request-what-should-i-do-for-airport-lounge-access.html

Just Back: New York City

National Geographic Traveler features editor Amy Alipio (on Twitter @amytravels and on Instagram @amyalipio) recently returned from a family trip to New York City to soak up the holiday glow. Here are some of the high points of her trip, in her own words.



from Intelligent Travel http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2014/12/17/just-back-new-york-city/

Vanilla Reloads Being Discontinued!

Vanilla Reload cards used to be a widely available and amazing tool. You were basically buying money that could be loaded onto a variety of prepaid card products. And many places took credit cards when purchasing them. Back when they were sold by office supply stores, many cardholders earned 5 points per dollar. And when […]

The post Vanilla Reloads Being Discontinued! appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/12/17/vanilla-reloads-discontinued/

10 Best Credit Card Offers For December

Every month I make a post with what I consider to be the best credit card sign-up bonuses of the month.

While there are several excellent long standing credit card offers, the specifics of the best offers are constantly changing (be it the annual fee, minimum spend requirement, or even amount of the sign-up bonus).

If you read my blog on a daily basis then by all means skip this post, but for me it’s a useful, “current” place to refer people that ask about which cards they should sign-up for, a question I get on a daily basis. For reference, here is my list of the best credit card sign up bonuses for November.

With that in mind, below are what I consider to be the best credit card sign-up bonuses for this month.

The post 10 Best Credit Card Offers For December appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/12/17/10-best-credit-card-offers-december/

Heads Up: Down the Hobbit Hole in Switzerland

Tolkien fans can visit the world’s first Middle-earth museum, about an hour from Zurich, as long as they can stoop.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/418d041f/sc/10/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A140C120C210Ctravel0Cdown0Ethe0Ehobbit0Ehole0Ein0Eswitzerland0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

International Real Estate: Real Estate in Montpellier, France

Montpellier, one of France’s fastest-growing urban centers, has become known as a hotbed for design and architecture.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/418d13ca/sc/22/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A140C120C180Crealestate0Creal0Eestate0Ein0Emontpellier0Efrance0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

36 Hours in Strasbourg, France

While the city shines brightest over the holidays, its allure endures with its canals, cobbled streets and hearty Alsatian cuisine.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/418c6f33/sc/10/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A140C120C210Ctravel0Cthings0Eto0Edo0Ein0E360Ehours0Ein0Estrasbourg0Efrance0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

In Transit Blog: In New York, a Kwanzaa Celebration With Savion Glover

The tap dancer Savion Glover will be featured in a Kwanzaa celebration at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/418c6d36/sc/10/l/0Lintransit0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A140C120C170Cin0Enew0Eyork0Ea0Ekwanzaa0Ecelebration0Ewith0Esavion0Eglover0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Hitchhiking the Skies – Flying with Travis And His Family

The universal symbol for those looking to hitch a ride is to stand by the side of the road with arm extended away from the body and thumb pointed up, tilted in the direction you are trying to go. The hope then is that a passing driver going in your direction will stop and offer you a ride. Of course, this applies to those hitchhikers who have a specific destination in mind.

My Dad tells of a guy he met once who just wanted to explore the country. Didn’t care where he went, just wanted to go. He would stand by the side of the road with one thumb pointed in each direction and jump in the first car that stopped, regardless of which way they were headed.

This more or less describes my family’s travel philosophy – we don’t really care much where we go, we just want to go. The modern equivalent of standing by the side of the road with a thumb pointed in each direction is to watch various websites such as the FlyerTalk Mileage Run Forum or the The Flight Deal and wait for a fare war, mistake fare, or otherwise really good deal that you can jump on. The general idea of these websites is to post fares which are cheap enough that people can and do fly them just for the miles (or status), so if you actually ascribe some value to visiting the destination, then it’s probably a good deal.

The post Hitchhiking the Skies – Flying with Travis And His Family appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/12/17/hitchhiking-skies-flying-travis-family/