It’s a beautiful summer evening in Los Angeles and I’ve spent the day with family and friends. My thanks to Kyle and Carly for giving me the chance to take a break on Sundays. Over the last week, we’ve...
The 10 Best Airlines For Last-Minute Award Space
Which airlines are most likely to release award space at the last-minute? We book a lot of last-minute tickets at Award Expert. In fact, booking tickets less than a week prior to travel has developed into our main business....
Bold Confidence: Waiting Till The Very Last Moment To Book Award Ticket
My wife woke up this morning without a ticket to Zurich. She had told her friends and family she was leaving today and would arrive on Saturday afternoon. She even told her parents her flight number. Small problem: the...
Introduction: An Asian First Class Adventure to Europe
Next up, a classic trip report that has been in the queue for too long. In 2016, I had the chance for a cool trip around the world. The purpose was to sample new premium cabin products and hotels...
Pros and Cons of the Illogical New Flying Blue Program
A new pricing scheme kicked in for Air France/KLM Flying Blue award redemptions on June 1st. Figuring it out has been like trying to figure out the writing of Faulkner. But I’ve been able to make a few general...
Massive Fuel Surcharges Return To Air Europa Award Bookings With Flying Blue
I had a feeling it was too good to be true… Earlier this week I wrote about Flying Blue no longer collecting fuel surcharges on Air Europa flights. Well, the fuel surcharges are back. Suddenly, taxes/fees that were $100...
British Airways Officially Acknowledges AA Award Booking Issue
For several weeks, it has been difficult (though not impossible) to book award flights on American Airlines using the British Airways Executive Club website. While the problem is not fixed, at least British Airways has acknowledged it. Lately, AA...
Flying Blue Drops Fuel Surcharges on Valuable SkyTeam Partner
Big news if you like using your miles to travel to Europe in business class and don’t like paying high surcharges: Flying Blue is currently not collecting fuel surcharges on Air Europa flights. Airline award space, particularly in premium...
An Abortive Argument Against An Arrogant American Airlines’ Agent
I don’t know when I am going to practice what I preach, but I could not help but to argue with an AA reservation agent on Saturday. As always, it was to my own detriment. Here’s the story. An...
United Saver Award Sale to Outdoor Destinations
Ever wanted to visit a beautiful National Park in the USA with your miles? United Airlines is offering a 20-25% discount on select mountain and outdoor destinations this week for travel in June. For bookings made through May 21st,...
Glitch? Odd Award Pricing From Delta
On Delta, adding an extra flight to your award ticket may reduce the overall price. This concept is not new: “hidden city ticketing” has been exploited for years (see skiplagged.com, for example). I’ve been booking award tickets on a...
I’m Giving Malaysia Airlines First Class Another Shot
I had to laugh when I read Lucky’s plan for his next trip. I had just checked in for the same flight hours before reading it. There’s no better way to get from Southeast Asia to Japan. I’m talking...
A Boring But Brilliant Award Redemption
Sometimes the best use of your miles is not for a luxurious longhaul first class flight but a short domestic flight in economy class. An Award Expert client needed to travel from Chicago to Birmingham this weekend. Dates were...
Booking a 50K Lufthansa First Class Award with Asiana
A first class Lufthansa award ticket between North America and Europe is only 50,000 Asiana Club miles, an excellent value. But be warned, booking is not a straightforward process. Asiana Club is a Starwood Preferred Guest transfer partner, meaning...
Why I’m Flying Los Angeles to Rome via Munich, Zurich, AND Frankfurt
You know you’re an airline junkie when you fly from Los Angeles to Rome deliberately via Munich, Zurich, AND Frankfurt. I’m traveling through Italy later this week and next on business. This is no vacation–I’ll be spending most days...
Live and Let’s Fly Weekend Digest: March 25, 2018
Spring began in Los Angeles this week with one more rainstorm, a fitting end to a rather meager winter. I’m still here, further extending my record of time in the last decade I have not stepped onto an airplane....
My Thought Process In Building A Multi-City Award Trip
We receive many interesting requests at Award Expert, my award booking service, including some that require a bit of creativity. Let me tell you about a recent trip. The client lived in Philadelphia. His destination: Beijing. He wanted to...
Delta: Legitimate Fraud Protection or SkyMiles Devaluation?
Delta SkyMiles international award tickets now carry a draconian new restriction: they must booked at least three days in advance if they do not start or end in the U.S. or Canada. Is this a legitimate fraud protection or...
Mea Culpa: A350 Delta One Suites for 60K Miles
“To err is human; to forgive, divine” – Alexander Pope (1709) I must admit I got a tad annoyed yesterday. I scheduled a post entitled How to Book A350 Delta One Suites for Cheap(er) Using Miles for yesterday morning and went...
20% Off Award Flights to Hawaii on United Airlines
United Airlines is running a 20% off flash sale on saver award flights to Hawaii. If you’re a United Premier member or a United-branded credit card holder, a pre-sale has already began and you can book space today. If...
