Explosion At Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill

In what appears to have been a gas explosion, the Hyatt Regency London has suffered some structural damage, and will be closed for at least the next few days.

Apparently all 500 guests were safely evacuated, with a handful of staff being treated for minor injuries.

The hotel is currently closed while the full extent of the damage is being determined.

I know many people took advantage of the discounted business class fares to book international travel for Thanksgiving weekend, so thought I'd pass this along.

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from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/explosion-hyatt-regency-london-churchill/

How Many Elite Members to Frequent Flyer Programs Have?

Reader Jered asked how many elite members of United’s MileagePlus program there are. And the easy answer is I do not know precisely, these are closely-guarded numbers. But I do have some “bigger than a breadbox” sorts of estimates. In other words, I have a general idea of the size of the elite pool, within […]

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from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/many-elite-members-frequent-flyer-programs/

“Do You Want Something to Drink?” A Memory of Family

On my recent book tour, I usually began each night’s talk with a story about playing Super Mario Brothers with my grandma. Her name was Regina but we all called her Nana, and she's been one of the most important people in my life



from The Art of Non-Conformity http://chrisguillebeau.com/memory/

United’s Sucker Bet: If You’re Hungry Enough, You’ll Waste Your Miles

Conde’ Nast‘s Barbara Peterson looks at the United MileagePlus option to redeem miles for meals at their Newark hub. As part of an impressive re-do launching for United’s terminal at Newark, there are several top-end eateries going in. One feature that’s being played up is the ability to use miles for food as an instant […]

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from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/uniteds-sucker-bet-youre-hungry-enough-youll-waste-miles/

Weekly Review: November 22, 2014

Good morning from (sweltering hot) Sydney!

This has been such an incredible and fantastic week. This trip with my dad is hands-down the best I've ever taken, and it's been so much fun sharing the stories with you guys. He's loving the comments as well -- I can't thank y'all enough for sharing this experience with us (and for reading in general).

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from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/weekly-review-november-22-2014/

Snowboarders kill nipple deep pow

"When it comes to snowboarding, there’s only one thing better than travelling to a place with tons of fresh powder waiting -- having the locals show you the goods when you get there."



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/tv/check-snowboarders-killing-ridiculous-nipple-deep-powder/

Never Believe an Airline When Its Lips Move

Airlines are like politicians. If the claims they make are non-binding (and very few are binding, even more so in a post-Ginsberg world), and they want something — a merger, or just customers to swallow a change without defecting and pulling business — there’s little incentive to keep their word. This is strange in a […]

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from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/never-believe-airline-lips-move/

Singing Happy Birthday On An Airplane!

On Thursday our journey around the world continued, with a flight from Singapore to Melbourne in Singapore Airlines first class. This is the segment that I was most personally disappointed in myself over.

That's because when I first booked the trip, the flight was scheduled to be operated by an A380. However, back in April Singapore Airlines downgraded the flight to a 777-300ER. I knew my dad would still be thrilled with a 777, but in this case I was my own worst enemy.

So I considered alternatives, including flying to Sydney or Auckland instead, but in the end decided to stick with our current routing, for a variety of reasons.

We took the daytime flight from Singapore to Melbourne, departing Singapore at 10:45AM and arriving in Melbourne at around 9PM.

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from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/singing-happy-birthday-on-an-airplane/

In Transit Blog: Cruising to Christmas Markets

Most major river cruise companies offer itineraries along the Danube, Main and Rhine rivers when holiday pop-ups are in full swing.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/40bcf32b/sc/10/l/0Lintransit0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A140C110C220Ccruising0Eto0Echristmas0Emarkets0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Questions That Are Rarely Asked: If Airlines Have Minimum Spend Requirements for Elite Status…

Joe Brancatelli asks a simple questions about minimum revenue requirements for earning elite status: Airlines have the right to create the terms of their programs as they see fit. But if they now base their programs on revenue instead of miles, why do they continue to demand a minimum number of flights and/or miles flown […]

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from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/questions-rarely-asked-airlines-minimum-spend-requirements-elite-status/

Condoms At Australian Airports — WTF?!

I was using the restroom at Melbourne Airport today, when I noticed this vending machine by the door, with the verbiage "Minimum Size, Maximum Convenience."

Now, I've seen vending machines at airports for feminine products, diapers, shaving cream, etc.

But this one consisted exclusively of a toothbrush, mints, two types of cologne, and two types of condoms. And seriously, if you're going to sell only two types of condoms, why would one of them be glow in the dark? Is there really a market for that?

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from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/condoms-australian-airports-wtf/

8 things the Greenlandic hate

"Losing our jobs to the Danish: Let's face it, Danish people have much more opportunity for professional experience back in Denmark. So when they come here, they qualify for better jobs than us. But we've been living here longer than them -- we deserve those jobs!"



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/8-things-greenlandic-love-hate/

Passenger Removed From A Flight Over Allergies?!

Check out this NBC 10 Philadelphia story about a girl who was removed from a US Airways flight between Charlotte and Philadelphia after she asked the flight attendant for Benadryl due to allergies.

Apparently they kept asking her the trigger questions for Ebola, if she has been outside the country, etc.

Here's the story:

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from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/passenger-removed-from-a-flight-over-allergies/

Double Points To Asia, Bonus HHonors, Discounted Starpoints

Here’s a round-up of the week’s points, miles and travel industry news you may have missed: Earn Double Business Extra points with American Flying to Asia from the USA American Airlines has partnered with Japan Airlines to offer double Business Extra points when you travel on American Airlines or codeshare (AA) flights operated by Japan […]



from The Points Guy http://thepointsguy.com/2014/11/double-points-to-asia-bonus-hhonors-buy-discounted-starpoints/

Newark’s Mashed Potatoes-for-Miles Program, a Hack to Power Your Devices at Airports, and Problems at Uber

News and notes from around the interweb: All-Audi all-inclusive car rental company Silvercar (see How I Made $12 on My Audi Rental Car) will now award Virgin America miles: 500, 1000, and 2000 points on this 1st, 2nd, and 3rd rental through December 31. LAX has new rules to promote unionization at the airport, and […]

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from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/11/22/newarks-mashed-potatoes-miles-program-hack-power-devices-airports-problems-uber/