Hilton Los Cabos NOT Honoring 279 HHonors Point Award Reservations

Yesterday I posted about the Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort allowing HHonors members to book King Premier Suite Oceanview rooms for 279 HHonors points per night.

The hotel is closed for renovations until July 1, 2015, so this was clearly a back-end error they made as they loaded inventory. Not surprisingly hundreds of people booked stays, and we didn't hear anything from the hotel for over 24 hours (in my opinion when there's a mistake that a company doesn't plan on honoring, they really should make every effort to contact customers within 24 hours).

Well, the hotel is now sending out the following cancellation emails, saying that they won't honor the bookings:

The post Hilton Los Cabos NOT Honoring 279 HHonors Point Award Reservations appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/hilton-los-cabos-not-honoring-279-hhonors-point-award-reservations/

Take a hyperlapse tour of Austria

This video took two years to make, and it's insanely beautiful:



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/tv/take-3-minute-hyperlapse-tour-austria/

Resort Fees are Evil (and Actionable), Arming the TSA, New Hotel Bonus Promotion

News and notes from around the interweb: The TSA wants to be armed. In Virginia, the director of the charitable gaming commission used to be armed until my then-boss was appointed to its board and pushed to eliminate this militarization. The TSA doesn’t need its own armed force — there’s already an on-scene armed force […]

The post Resort Fees are Evil (and Actionable), Arming the TSA, New Hotel Bonus Promotion appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/resort-fees-are-evil-and-actionable-arming-the-tsa-new-hotel-bonus-promotion/

Signs you learned to eat in England

Curry abroad (even in India) just doesn’t cut the mustard:



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/15-signs-learned-eat-english-style/

16 reasons why Pittsburgh's the best

Yinz. Dippy eggs. Daahntahn. N’at. Jagoff. Progie. Sahside. Gumbands. Stillers. Buccos. Sammich. Pittsburgh's so great it basically has its own language!



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/notebook/16-reasons-id-rather-pittsburgh-anywhere-else/

Indonesia Announces Changes To Their Visa Policy

It seems that Egypt and Indonesia are going in opposite directions on the visa issue.

As Ben recently posted, Egypt is going to stop issuing visas on arrival for individual travelers come May. On the other hand, Indonesia has announced that next month they will expand the list of countries not requiring a visa from 15 to 45 countries, including the US.

Interestingly, Ben likes going to Egypt because apparently it's not uncommon to find round trip first class tickets to the US for $1800. Or even less. But now it seems that the cost and hassle of obtaining a visa may kill the deal.

The post Indonesia Announces Changes To Their Visa Policy appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/indonesia-announces-changes-to-their-visa-policy/

BigCrumbs Shopping Portal Now Back as MainStreetSHARES

I got notice today that Bigcrumbs was back in business today after several months of being offline. For those not familiar with BigCrumbs, it was a shopping portal many of us in the game used to make purchases at various retailers and receive cash back on our purchases. In addition, when we referred new members, […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2015/03/bigcrumbs-shopping-portal-now-back-as-mainstreetshares.html

Realities of German American kids

American celebrations of German ‘heritage’ are embarrassing for everyone, but most of all for us:



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/4-realities-american-kids-raised-german-parents/

British Airways Was Hacked and All My Points Are Gone. Here’s What I Had to Do.

I couldn’t log into my British Airways Executive Club account today. And I received an email from British Airways: British Airways has become aware of some unauthorised activity in relation to your Executive Club account. This appears to have been the result of a third party using information obtained elsewhere on the internet, via an […]

The post British Airways Was Hacked and All My Points Are Gone. Here’s What I Had to Do. appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/british-airways-was-hacked-and-all-my-points-are-gone-heres-what-i-had-to-do/

Miles Madness: My Picks for Reward Card Champs 2015

Wallaby Financial is collecting votes for Card Madness 2015, which is their quest to identify readers’ favorite rewards credit cards. The way it works is that they let readers vote on their favorite cards across four categories (best airline credit card, hotel card, cash back, and points) and narrow it down every round until they […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2015/03/miles-madness-my-picks-for-reward-card-champs-2015.html

5 spots in Chattanooga that Chattanoogans don’t want you to know about

1. Bea’s If your server sees the slightest hint of a bare bowl, they’ll snatch up the current smorgasbord of food and replace it with fresher and hotter bowls of fried chicken, peach cobbler, fried okra, turnip greens, new potatoes, pinto beans, buttered yeast rolls, and coleslaw. The tea is syrupy sweet, the hospitality is […]



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/network/5-spots-chattanooga-chattanoogans-dont-want-know/

In Transit Blog: New Excursions for Grandparents and Their Grandchildren

Road Scholar is introducing summer sessions for grandparents and their college-age grandchildren in Cuba and Costa Rica, among other destinations.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44df8943/sc/3/l/0Lintransit0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A150C0A30C270Cnew0Eexcursions0Efor0Egrandparents0Eand0Etheir0Egrandchildren0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Weird Pop-Ups On The Site? It’s Not (Necessarily) Just You

In the past few weeks, you might have noticed people commenting about getting served sketchy pop-ups when they access the site, or click on links in the newsletter. You might even be one of those people.

It's inexcusable. And we're really sorry. Especially Ben.

The blog is basically his baby, so having people hijack his site and ruining the experience for y'all is just maddening.

So we'd like to interrupt your regularly-scheduled miles and points party to talk about why this is happening, what is being done about it, and what you can do on your end in the meantime.

The post Weird Pop-Ups On The Site? It’s Not (Necessarily) Just You appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/weird-pop-ups-on-the-site-its-not-necessarily-just-you/

Has Your British Airways Account Been Hacked?

It seems that many have had their British Airways account hacked and balance reduced to zero. Our own Rick Ingersoll‘s account has been affected, though his wife Katy’s was not. Now is the time, gamers and savers: check and keep an eye on your BA account balance. Keep up with the FlyerTalk thread to stay […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2015/03/has-your-british-airways-account-been-hacked.html

Keeping your teen engaged traveling

All parents of teenagers will agree that the teen years present a unique set of challenges, but can a family still plan a round the world trip? Is it actually possible to combine long term travel and the teenage years?



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/abroad/7-strategies-keep-teen-engaged-traveling-long-term/

Here’s How the US Airlines Can Compete And Win Against the Big Gulf Airlines (Instead of Lobbying the Government for Protectionist Policies)

I’ve written extensively about the protectionism that US airlines are seeking from the government in bashing Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar — and about the hypocrisy as US airlines lobby for and take huge subsidies while attacking only those competitors they’re worried about for doing the same thing while ignoring the even greater subsidies offered to […]

The post Here’s How the US Airlines Can Compete And Win Against the Big Gulf Airlines (Instead of Lobbying the Government for Protectionist Policies) appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/heres-how-the-us-airlines-can-compete-and-win-against-the-big-gulf-airlines-instead-of-lobbying-the-government-for-protectionist-policies/

The US can learn something about minimum wage from the rest of the world

Federal minimum wage in the US stands at $7.25 an hour. It may not sound so low, but it is. If an employee works full time at the current minimum wage, that worker’s annual salary would be about $15,000. That falls below the poverty line for any family of more than one. Adding insult to […]



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/change/us-can-learn-something-minimum-wage-rest-world/

InnGate wifi router flaw exposes hotels to hackers

The routers that dozens of hotel chains worldwide rely on to run their wireless networks have a flaw that opens them to ...



from Tnooz http://www.tnooz.com/article/wifi-router-flaw-exposes-many-hotels-to-hackers-says-cylance/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=wifi-router-flaw-exposes-many-hotels-to-hackers-says-cylance

The Two-Person Cockpit Is Just The Beginning

Airlines will have to introduce more stringent checks in the wake of Germanwings, experts say.



from Travel Feedly http://www.ibtimes.com/germanwings-flight-9525-how-effective-will-two-person-cockpit-rule-be-preventing-1862082

How To Tell Airplanes Apart

In the trip report I wrote earlier about my flight from Frankfurt to Philadelphia, reader Francisco C asked the following:

"Lucky, I ‘m always impressed how you can distinguish all these airplane varieties (A330 vs 777 for example) when you’re in some cases hundreds of meters away. Any suggestions on how an interested novice like myself could train his/her eyes to tell planes apart. thanks!"

There are lots of different types of people in this hobby, from people who are just interested in travel, to hardcore aviation geeks. I know plenty of people who fly hundreds of thousands of miles per year and can barely tell the difference between a 747 and an A380. And that's fine.

The post How To Tell Airplanes Apart appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/how-to-tell-airplanes-apart/

Has Your British Airways Avios Account Been Hacked?

A lot of folks on this FlyerTalk thread have been reporting that large numbers of British Airways Executive Club accounts have been hacked and drained of their Avios balances. It appears that at least some of these incidents are British Airways preemptively zeroing out accounts in order to prevent a hack from doing so, and...



from The Points Guy http://thepointsguy.com/2015/03/has-your-british-airways-avios-account-been-hacked/

Bilingual kids become tolerant adult

This study provides an important demonstration that everyday experience in one aspect -- language learning -- can influence children’s beliefs about a wide range of domains, reducing children’s essentialist biases:



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/pulse/proof-bilingual-kids-grow-accepting-tolerant-adults/

Head to Head: Chase Sapphire Preferred Versus Citi ThankYou Premier

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and the Citi ThankYou Premier Card are the flagship travel rewards card offered by Chase and Citi. There are exclusive cards, such as the JP Morgan Palladium Card or Citigroup Chairman American Express card, that are targeted at specific individual, however, the Sapphire Preferred and ThankYou Premier are cards available […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2015/03/head-to-head-chase-sapphire-preferred-versus-citi-thankyou-premier.html

Seven Perfect Days in Belize

I have been traveling to Belize every year for more than a decade and am already planning my next trip. Why? This small Central American nation delivers cultural and natural heritage in spades. Here’s a prescription for the perfect week in this small but mighty wonderland.



from Intelligent Travel http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2015/03/27/seven-perfect-days-in-belize/

Minor changes create a ripples of trouble for mom

from Elliott http://elliott.org/from-the-trenches/minor-changes-create-a-ripples-of-trouble-for-mom/

Getting Your Visa for International Travel the Easy Way

The New York Times has a piece on visa services. I contribute, Gary Leff, a co-founder of Milepoint.com, a website for veteran and would-be frequent fliers, and the blogger behind the miles and points site View From the Wing, has directed his readers to Allied Passport and Visa, which has given them discounts. He said […]

The post Getting Your Visa for International Travel the Easy Way appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/getting-your-visa-for-international-travel-the-easy-way/

Which Credit Card To Use For Daily Getaways Purchase?

I've written extensively about Daily Getaways, whereby you can purchase travel packages at a discount.

The first of five weeks of offers is just wrapping up. So far we've had the opportunity to purchase points from IHG Rewards Club, Club Carlson, and Hilton HHonors.

I'm often asked which credit cards are best for these purchases. The one thing to understand is that Daily Getaways purchases are processed by Daily Getaways, and not the program from which you're buying points. In other words, if you're using this promotion to buy IHG Rewards Club points, your purchase will be processed by Daily Getaways and not by IHG (therefore it doesn't count as hotel spend).

The post Which Credit Card To Use For Daily Getaways Purchase? appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/which-credit-card-to-use-for-daily-getaways-purchase/

5 US food myths that need to die

The quintessential American food is not apple pie. It's pizza.



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/5-american-food-myths-need-die/

The destination marketing live stream revolution begins with North Carolina

Visit North Carolina is one of the first destination marketers to make an investment in the fast-emerging live streaming arena. We’ve written ...



from Tnooz http://www.tnooz.com/article/the-destination-marketing-live-stream-revolution-begins-with-north-carolina/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-destination-marketing-live-stream-revolution-begins-with-north-carolina

Instagram of the Month: Mount Cook

Johan Lolos (on Instagram @LeBackpacker) has been roaming the globe with a pack on his back and a camera at the ready since 2013. He's currently making his way across New Zealand, and sharing photographs from his escapades on Instagram. Here's a peek into how he got this winning shot of a hiker in New Zealand's Mount Cook National Park.



from Intelligent Travel http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2015/03/27/instagram-of-the-month-mount-cook/

Microphones on city streets? Let’s talk about that (before it’s too late)

from Elliott http://elliott.org/blog/microphones-on-city-streets-lets-talk-about-that-before-its-too-late/

San Francisco

A city that recalls the bygone era of noir.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44de5c4b/sc/16/l/0L0Snytimes0N0Ctravel0Cguides0Cnorth0Eamerica0Cunited0Estates0Ccalifornia0Csan0Efrancisco0Coverview0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Memphis

Where cool was born.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44de5c48/sc/26/l/0L0Snytimes0N0Ctravel0Cguides0Cnorth0Eamerica0Cunited0Estates0Ctennessee0Cmemphis0Coverview0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Delta Increases Partner Award Bookings Through Site

Despite some huge changes to its mileage program including increasing award redemptions and switching both its Medallion elite program and mileage-earning to a revenue-based system, and overhauling its partner earning rates, Delta has made one major positive change: its online award search engine is much more versatile these days. Not only can you use advanced...



from The Points Guy http://thepointsguy.com/2015/03/delta-shows-more-partner-award-space-vietnam-airlines-aeroflot-garuda-more/

Where to travel next books [QUIZ]

Why not let your favorite books tell you where to travel to next?



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/travel-next-based-favorite-books/

New York City

A frenetic city with a tranquil side.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44de3403/sc/14/l/0L0Snytimes0N0Ctravel0Cguides0Cnorth0Eamerica0Cunited0Estates0Cnew0Eyork0Cnew0Eyork0Ecity0Coverview0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Miami

A glamorous city amid spectacular nature.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44de3408/sc/31/l/0L0Snytimes0N0Ctravel0Cguides0Cnorth0Eamerica0Cunited0Estates0Cflorida0Cmiami0Coverview0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Review: British Airways Galleries First Class Lounge Chicago Airport

I landed from Tampa at around 9:45AM, so first decided to head to the American Flagship Lounge. American operates out of Terminal 3 at O'Hare, while Cathay Pacific operates out of Terminal 5.

The lounges in Terminal 5 aren't exactly exciting, so I decided to first spend about an hour in the Flagship Lounge.

Then at around 11AM I took the train over to Terminal 5. This requires leaving security, so at around 11:15AM I was at Cathay Pacific's check-in counter.

I was quickly checked in and greeted by the station manager. My boarding pass was issued within a minute, at which point I was escorted through security.

The post Review: British Airways Galleries First Class Lounge Chicago Airport appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/review-british-airways-galleries-first-class-lounge-chicago-airport/

Prague

A city with a thousand years of architecture.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44ddb814/sc/4/l/0L0Snytimes0N0Ctravel0Cguides0Ceurope0Cczech0Erepublic0Cprague0Coverview0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Vienna

A former imperial city that still feels luxurious.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44ddb6ba/sc/3/l/0L0Snytimes0N0Ctravel0Cguides0Ceurope0Caustria0Cvienna0Coverview0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Have Recent Plane Crashes Affected Your Decision to Fly?

Has the news of another airplane tragedy caused you to change your travel plans? Have you decided to use another means of transportation?





from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44dda15d/sc/7/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A150C0A30C260Cworld0Ceurope0Chave0Erecent0Eplane0Ecrashes0Eaffected0Eyour0Edecision0Eto0Efly0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Hilton Changing Award Categories of Several Hotels — And Why It Doesn’t Matter

After Hilton’s dramatic award chart gutting of nearly two years ago, there weren’t huge changes again this year. And Hilton decided to change the way they made changes to how they re-assign hotels to award categories. Instead of an annual change to tons of hotels (a schedule they really weren’t wedded to in the past […]

The post Hilton Changing Award Categories of Several Hotels — And Why It Doesn’t Matter appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/hilton-changing-award-categories-of-several-hotels-and-why-it-doesnt-matter/

Travel New York: 5 Things to Do in Niagara Falls in Winter

Join Vagabondish on Twitter and Facebook.

Contrary to what the calendar and silly weathermen might be telling you, winter isn’t completely over yet (is it ever in Western NY?! I’m kidding, Buffalo. I love you …). Unfortunately, unless we’re talking about Aspen or you enjoy mild hypothermia, winter is rarely the ideal time to visit anywhere. Which is why you might […]

The post Travel New York: 5 Things to Do in Niagara Falls in Winter appeared first on Vagabondish.

from Vagabondish http://www.vagabondish.com/travel-niagara-falls-new-york/

Yelp claims 1.5 million transactions to date — will adding activities accelerate that number?

Yelp is continuing its push to expand beyond its core restaurant review service and into a fully bookable small business platform. The ...



from Tnooz http://www.tnooz.com/article/yelp-claims-1-5-million-transactions-to-date-will-adding-activities-accelerate-that-number/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=yelp-claims-1-5-million-transactions-to-date-will-adding-activities-accelerate-that-number

How to infuriate someone from Utah

Ask us about polygamy. Come on, it's been illegal here since the 1800s, people:



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/notebook/infuriate-someone-utah/

Airlines in Thailand Face Bans Over Safety Concerns

New flights could be blocked and carriers could be subject to more inspections after the International Civil Aviation Organization found problems.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44dd301b/sc/28/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A150C0A30C280Cbusiness0Cinternational0Cairlines0Ein0Ethailand0Eface0Ebans0Eover0Esafety0Econcerns0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Missing British Airways Avios? You’re Not Alone

It seems that thousands of British Airways Executive Club accounts are being audited today. Lots of people are reporting that when they try to log into their account today they're getting the following error message:

"We are not able to recognise the membership number that you have supplied. Please check and re-enter."

In these instances, you're able to log into your account after resetting your password, whereby they email you a link that allows you to log into your account.

However, when you log into your account you'll notice that all of your Avios have been removed, and you have a zero balance.

The post Missing British Airways Avios? You’re Not Alone appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/03/27/missing-british-airways-avios-youre-not-alone/

4 truthbombs you need to hear about living in LA

Traffic is getting worse again. And, in a uniquely Californian twist, an app is making things worse.



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/pulse/4-truthbombs-need-hear-living-la/

Why the Apple Watch will enable personalised travel

Apple’s multi-device platform has enabled its strong position in the smartphone market, and we can expect to see similar uptake in the ...



from Tnooz http://www.tnooz.com/article/Apple-Watch-travel-personalised/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=why-the-apple-watch-will-enable-personalised-travel

In Transit Blog: A New Resort for Post-Hurricane Los Cabos

Last fall’s Hurricane Odile paused construction in the Los Cabos region, but the beach resort area at the tip of Mexico’s Baja Peninsula will continue its comeback with the June 13 opening of the Cape, a Thompson Hotel, the first new hotel to open in the region since the storm.





from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/44dd58a7/sc/10/l/0Lintransit0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A150C0A30C270Ca0Enew0Eresort0Efor0Epost0Ehurricane0Elos0Ecabos0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm