I often recommend to my friends and clients that top notch ski resorts in the summer offer excellent redemption opportunities because you greatly increase your chance of receiving a complimentary suite upgrade. In addition, it is not uncommon with summer occupancy rates to have the amenities and service quality of a world-class resort all to…
About alex
Alex loves to travel and does so a lot. Logging 100,000 flight miles each year over the past 4 years, Alex uses points and miles to power his passion. Alex is continuously striving to experience the far reaches of the globe. In his day job, Alex is a Management Consultant frequently on the road advising Technology organizations. I love thinking about, reading about, and talking about all things travel. Feel free to reach me at pmmalex@gmail.com
Sign up for Email || Twitter || Facebook |
Hotel Offers || Airline Offers || Bank Offers || Cash Back Offers
Running the table on the Hyatt promotion – Final Tally
Like The Weekly Flyer, I too have been working towards maxing out the Q1 Hyatt promotion. I wrote last month about my Hyatt Binger in which I earned 125,000 Points in 26 nights. I went ahead and finished off the Hyatt Possibilities promotion today. With several closed club lounge bonuses and incorrectly posted Diamond amenities,…
Konnichiwa Japan Trip Report – Japan Airlines Economy Class from ORD to NRT
My general philosophy when it comes to award redemptions is that if I can accrue enough miles for a business class ticket, then I can also afford two economy class tickets and share the trip with someone. While the Japan Airlines business class ticket was quite tempting, I stuck with my philosophy and went for…
Konnichiwa Japan Trip Report – Introduction and Planning
Five months ago I returned from a 2.5 week trip throughout South East Asia. I loved the trip and culture so much that I knew I wanted to see more in Asia, even before the Cathay Pacific 777 touched down in the US. I have a ‘book now and figure it out later’ mentality when…
Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Martini Follow-up
I blogged earlier about my recent weekend trip to the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek. As we all know, no trip to Beaver Creek (or Colorado in general) is complete without visiting at least 5-7 Colorado Microbreweries. I was only able to partake in an underachieving 4 Colorado micro-brews last weekend, but as a Martini Follow-up,…
Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Hotel Review
Last January, I blogged about a big time Hyatt award redemption close to home. I went ahead and booked a room for the weekend at this Category 6 Park Hyatt Beaver creek for 22,000 per night using some of my recently earned Hyatt points. A friend of mine wanted to hit the slopes and I…
My Top 10 SPG Complimentary Hotel Room Upgrades–Part 2
Last week I presented #10-#6 of my top 10 SPG Complimentary Upgrades on Award Stays. One of the greatest differentiators of the Starwood Preferred Guest Program is that “Upgrades to best available room at check-in, including Standard Suites.†is a stated benefit as a Platinum member including award stays. This week we move in to…
My finest 2011 Travel Achievement
The USA Today is a great newspaper for road warrior’s given its presence in most major hotels. I always grab the copy left outside my hotel room door on the days I fly. I use it to keep me entertained during takeoff and landing. My routine is consistent. I quickly scan the headlines and rush…
Good Morning from Park Hyatt Beaver Creek
Good morning from beautiful Beaver Creek! Having just experienced an incredible city hotel in the Park Hyatt Tokyo, I decided to switch things up this weekend and try out the ski resort lifestyle. Back in January, I blogged about a big time Hyatt award redemption close to home. I went ahead and booked a room…
Southwest’s Ridiculous Standby Policy
OK, I’ll admit it. I fly Southwest Airlines every week. I have achieved A-List Preferred, their top tier elite status, as well as a holder of the lucrative Companion Pass. While international travel is my aspiration, I have tried and tried (and tried) to find a legacy carrier to get me from point A to…
My Top 10 SPG Complimentary Upgrades on Award Stays – Part 1
Starwood Preferred Guest takes good care of its top tier Platinum members. One of the greatest differentiators of the Starwood Preferred Guest Program is that “Upgrades to best available room at check-in, including Standard Suites.” is a stated benefit as a Platinum member including award stays. While you may have to argue with a stubborn…
Arctic Adventure – Unforgettable Encounter
Barrow provided me the most memorable trip I have ever experienced. One unforgettable encounter was unlike any other I’ve had before. Trip Report Introduction Initial Impressions of Barrow Exploring Barrow An Unforgettable Encounter During our Barrow tour, we finished up the city portion and headed for Point Barrow, the northernmost point in the United States.…
Arctic Adventure – Exploring Barrow
Admittedly, there is not a whole lot to do in Barrow. The real joy was taking in the sights, sounds, and extreme cultural differences of this isolated Alaskan city. Trip Report Introduction Initial Impressions of Barrow Exploring Barrow An Unforgettable Encounter After a 30 hour journey on Alaska Airlines, my 737-400 Combi touched down at…
More ridiculousness at the Park Hyatt Tokyo
Silly me, I absentmindedly left an unattended wireless mouse out this morning at the Park Hyatt Tokyo. I returned this evening after housekeeping service to find they had placed a mouse pad next to my lonely mouse. Did the hotel cleaning staff really send someone downstairs to remedy the situation upon discovering this rogue mouse…
Diamond Breakfast over Tokyo
This is what it is all about. The grand daddy of award redemptions. Years spent analyzing (obsessing over) points, miles and status paid off in an especially big way this time around. I checked in last night at the Park Hyatt Tokyo and was upgraded to a stunning 1000 square foot Park Suite King perched…
The Delta – Southwest battle goes digital
Satire intended – The battle between Southwest and Delta over Atlanta spilled over to the digital world when Southwest released a newly revamped iPhone app. One can only assume Southwest was envious of Delta’s online award booking engine and needed to make a move. Check out this new, highly intuitive interface for selecting cities on…
Greetings from Kyoto
On March 1st, the Westin Miyako Kyoto is leaving its category 4 roots behind and upgrading to category 5 stardom. They have graciously upgraded me to a Luxury Suite for my 5 night stay this week (at category 4 pricing, of course). I’d love to see this Westin stay a category 4 hotel but let’s…
Save money internationally with the Global ATM Alliance
I hate ATM fees. It is less a concern over the money and more a matter of principle. ATM fees are especially prevalent and can be very high when traveling abroad. Even with a no international transaction fee credit card, I find inherit risk in using my credit card abroad in certain situations. As a…
Arctic Adventure – Initial Impressions of Barrow
I can’t fully capture all of the feelings and emotions I experienced in Barrow, Alaska. A lot of these observations will seem random and scattered, and that is the point. The trip was a sensory overload with every hour bringing amazing and memorable observations. Barrow is truly unique. So here goes……. Trip Report Introduction Initial…
Comical Spirit Airlines Fee of the Month
Spirit Airlines charges fees for just about everything. It is part of their business model and I understand that. I value flight volume over flight comfort and admit I am willing to fly them if the price is right (after adding in all the fees). With that being said, it does not change the fact…