I wasn’t the only one who took advantage of the incredible SWISS First Class award space made briefly available last fall. Hundreds did, including many other bloggers. Robert from Milenomics shares of his settlement reached with Aeroplan. He had...
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...
EL AL Loses Market Share, Posts Loss
Israeli flag carrier EL AL just reported a disappointing quarterly loss and faces intense competition in the TLV market. EL AL blamed rising jet fuel prices and higher employee salaries for its $29.7MN fourth quarter loss. While revenue grew...
Oops: Delta Rescinds Prohibitive Award Booking Rule
Delta rolled back a prohibitive award booking restriction, leaving in place…a prohibitive award booking restriction. As I reported earlier today, Delta unrolled a draconian new restriction on SkyMiles bookings, prohibiting all redemptions within three days of travel that does...
United Loses $1.5MN in Lawsuit Over FAs Who Watched iPads During Flight
How did firing two FAs for “not doing their jobs” become a civil rights lawsuit in which United Airlines stands to lose $1.5MN? Ruben Lee and Jeanne Stroup had been United flight attendants for over 35 years. But in...
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...
Surprise: United Suspends PetSafe Program New Bookings…
Although hardly a surprise, United Airlines has suspended new reservations under its PetSafe program until May 01, 2018. If you visit United’s PetSafe website, you’ll be met with the following language: Effective immediately, we are not accepting any new...
Can Someone Tell Me What This Airline Meal Is?
This week’s Meal of the Week is an investigation. I need some help identifying what exactly I was served onboard a late-night flight from Yerevan, Armenia to Istanbul. Armavia was once the flag-carrier of Armenia but is now defunct....
The 10 Least Expensive Cities in the World
Yesterday I shared the 10 most expensive cities in the world. Today, we’ll explore the 10 least expensive cities in the world. Each year The Economist publishes a list of the most and least expensive cities in the world....
Lufthansa Boards A380 in 20 Minutes with Biometric Boarding
The future of travel: approach the gate, scan your face, board the aircraft. This is not some dystopian world or sci-fi movie. This is how Lufthansa is now boarding flights at Los Angeles International Airport. Lufthansa has rolled out...
Why Are There So Many Animals In Airline Cabins?
An honest question: why are there so many animals in airline cabins? How did people ever get by without them in the past? As near as I can tell, this is a uniquely American issue. I never see pets...
New Air France Ad Campaign Misses Mark
Historically, Air France has showcased the most beautiful ad campaigns in the world. Its new one…not so much. I’ve raved about the beauty and simplicity of previous Air France ad campaigns. They have always been elegant and underscored the...
The 10 Most Expensive Cities in the World
What are the 10 most expensive cities in the world to live in? The Economist compiles an annual report each year and is out with its 2018 list. This list is formulated based upon a number of factors, including...
Live and Let’s Fly Weekend Digest: March 18, 2018
A trip is on the horizon…I’m anticipating a trip to Europe coming up, perhaps as early tomorrow. But for now, another week in LA. I didn’t even spend this many consecutive days on the ground when my son was...
A Family Holiday in Beautiful Borneo
One of our favorite family holidays was to Beautiful Borneo over Christmas. We spent most of our time in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia as our port of entry to the nearby islands, and a side trip to Brunei. While no...
Hotel Upgrades Remain Elusive Without Insistence
This year I am traveling more than ever, giving Ryan Bingham a run for his money. As such, I find myself in many hotels some of which honor elite benefits regarding hotel upgrades, and others that do not. Instead...
United Could Easily Improve IRROPS
Businesses should not be measured by how they operate when things go right but rather how they react when things go wrong. United Airlines absolutely fell apart on a recent trip that experienced irregular operations before a dedicated employee...
How I Scored an Amazing Upgrade at Park Hyatt Sydney
It was a dark and stormy night in Sydney. We had checked in late to the Park Hyatt Sydney after our train ride from Canberra and were cold. Small problem. Our heater in the room didn’t work. And the...
United Charters Private Jet for Lost Dog
United chartered a private jet to reunite a German Shepard with his owners…after sending the dog to Japan instead of Kansas. Imagine this. You’re moving from Oregon to Kansas. After weighing flying versus driving, you book travel on United...
Dear Hyatt, We Don’t Need Another Courtyard by Marriott Chain
Dear Hyatt, the U.S. doesn’t need another Courtyard by Marriott chain. Please. Hyatt is piloting a program at a handful of Hyatt Place properties that eliminates free breakfast, long a cornerstone of this brand. Based on customer feedback, Hyatt...
