My Favorite Starwood Preferred Guest Hotel Redemptions (And Where I Go To Get Crazy)

One of my favorite hotel rewards cards is the Starwood Preferred American Express Credit Card. When I spend on my card, I receive points that I can use towards free hotel nights. Not just ordinary hotel nights, but stays at special, luxury properties that I could never afford otherwise. I receive great value on my […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2014/11/my-favorite-starwood-preferred-guest-hotel-redemptions-and-where-i-go-to-get-crazy.html

If your travel agent doesn’t pay your bill, should you have to pay again?

from Elliott http://elliott.org/thats-ridiculous-2/travel-agent-doesnt-pay-bill-pay/

Mommy and Baby Elephant

Taken with the Sony FE 70-200mm Lens Here’s one of the photos that is part of the new Sony FE 70-200 Review here on the site. The optical image stabilization really helped to make sure the shot was nice and crisp, even taken from a helicopter! Daily Photo – Mommy and Baby Elephant Aren't they […]



from Stuck in Customs http://www.stuckincustoms.com/2014/11/05/mommy-and-baby-elephant/

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XVIII

Things I've found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.



from The Art of Non-Conformity http://chrisguillebeau.com/6-discoveries-from-near-and-far-volume-xviii/

Snap! That Won’t Work… The War On Water Has Been Won, But We Still Keep Fighting…

I’ve written that the flight I fear the most are United’s Hong Kong routes in economy. I wouldn’t much love American’s Hong Kong – Dallas in back either. Hong Kong airport isn’t an ally in the War on Water. Since you can take water through their checkpoints, there’s an additional security check at the gate […]

The post Snap! That Won’t Work… The War On Water Has Been Won, But We Still Keep Fighting… appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/04/snap-wont-work-war-water-won-still-keep-fighting/

Is HIlton HHonors The Best Hotel Loyalty Program?

People often ask me for advice as to which airline or hotel chain they should be loyal to. I certainly have my favorites based on what suits my travel patterns best, but the truth is that there's no single "best" program, be it on the hotel or airline front. Everyone values things differently, and even when people explain to me what they value most, I still sometimes struggle with making suggestions, since there are so many minor things that can impact which program is best.

For example, as much as I rag on Delta SkyMiles, I've recommended a countless number of times that people consider being loyal to them. If their route network suits you or if what you value most are domestic upgrades, they're pretty darn tough to beat, in my opinion.

On the hotel front, I love Hyatt Gold Passport and Starwood Preferred Guest. I find they do the best job with elite recognition while also having the most reasonable qualification tiers for status.

The post Is HIlton HHonors The Best Hotel Loyalty Program? appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/04/hilton-hhonors-best-hotel-loyalty-program/

In Transit Blog: A California Location for Cycling House Camps

The Cycling House will offer training camps designed for endurance cyclists and triathletes in Solvang, Calif., this winter.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/40287124/sc/10/l/0Lintransit0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A140C110C0A40Ca0Ecalifornia0Elocation0Efor0Ecycling0Ehouse0Ecamps0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

A Website Everyone Should Know About to Keep Programs Honest

Hilton is the hotel program that devalued the most in 2013. Now, instead of showing members a list of all of the hotels changing categories in a single shot, they make changes as they go. And in the name of transparency, they just post hotel redemption category changes to a web page throughout the year. […]

The post A Website Everyone Should Know About to Keep Programs Honest appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/04/website-everyone-know-keep-programs-honest/

Hipster Portland: Family Edition

Portland may be best known for its beer, bicycling locals, and street food, but—as unlikely as it sounds—many of the city's seemingly “grown-up” attractions can be geared towards kids with just a little tweaking. Here's the rundown on how to give hipster Portland a family-friendly spin.



from Intelligent Travel http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2014/11/04/hipster-portland-family-edition/

Singapore Creates Impossible Expectations

A few weeks ago a hilarious image was circulating the web about the overall examination results for a kid at a primary school in Singapore.

As you can see, he got straight "A"s, but under remarks it said "Must work harder for better results. There is still room for improvement."

Hah! And that brings me to my flight last night from New York to Frankfurt in Singapore Suites Class -- it was good, but by comparison it wasn't good enough. And that's Singapore's fault. Because they're so good. Let me explain.

Back in August I flew from Frankfurt to New York on Singapore Airlines in A380 business class. I was fully expecting to be disappointed, given that the business class cabin has 86 seats, and I had previously almost exclusively flown Singapore Airlines first class on longhaul flights.

The post Singapore Creates Impossible Expectations appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/04/singapore-creates-impossible-expectations/

Airline Fees To Top A Record $50 Billion

A new study finds that fees generated from services beyond the base price of an airline ticket are at an all-time high.



from Travel Feedly http://www.ibtimes.com/airline-fees-top-record-50-billion-year-1718748

Priceline Isn’t the Company You Think it Is

Marketplace interviewed me for this morning’s coverage of Priceline’s earnings report. “It’s not just William Shatner, but the whole company has to boldly go where no travel company has gone before,” says Gary Leff, who writes the viewfromthewing.com blog. “They haven’t quite figured out how to teleport themselves into the future of online travel.” Leff […]

The post Priceline Isn’t the Company You Think it Is appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/04/priceline-isnt-company-think/

5 Reasons I’m Signing Up for the British Airways Visa Signature Card

Ever since I got paranoid about Chase shutting my accounts down, I’ve been on somewhat of a break when it comes to signing up for new personal cards. Fortunately, that break is coming to an end, and I will soon be ready to sign up for a handful of new cards yet to be decided […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2014/11/5-reasons-im-signing-up-for-the-british-airways-visa-signature-card.html

Leaders Club Makes Earning Free Nights Easier

Back in April I wrote about Leading Hotels Of The World, which has 400+ unique boutique and luxury properties around the globe.

While it's not for everyone, they do have an interesting loyalty program, consisting of two status levels -- Leaders Club and Unlimited.

One thing that makes status with Leading Hotels Of The World so unique is that the only way to earn status with them is to pay for it, which costs $150 and $1,200 for Leaders Club and Unlimited, respectively.

The perks are pretty compelling, so signing up for Leaders Club is a no brainer if you have at least a couple of stays planned with them. Unlimited can be worth it as well, as it offers some perks you won't get with other hotel chains, like complimentary airport transfers at many properties.

The post Leaders Club Makes Earning Free Nights Easier appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/04/leaders-club-makes-earning-free-nights-easier/

Frugal Traveler: Are European Museum Passes Worth the Money?

The answer: It depends. That said, here are some things to consider if you’re visiting Amsterdam, Madrid, Florence or Paris.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/4026e69e/sc/10/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A140C110C0A40Ctravel0Care0Eeuropean0Emuseum0Epasses0Eworth0Ethe0Emoney0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm